Every Last Word

EVERY LAST WORD is an exceptionally well-written and beautifully-told story about a girl who has spent most of her life hiding the fact that she’s suffering from OCD, desperate to not only appear normal but to be normal. It’s a story that is heartwarming and heartbreaking and incredibly moving. It puts readers in the main character, Sam McAllister’s shoes, giving them a glimpse at what it’s like to live with a mind that has the tendency to spiral out-of-control and the fear that thoughts could turn into actions that could be harmful. Samantha McAllister never had a problem fitting in, at least not on the outside. She was one of the “Crazy Eights” – she was pretty, she was popular, she was athletic, she went to all the right parties, she went to all the best concerts. But on the inside she knew she didn’t fit. Her OCD, with thoughts that sometimes went to dark places and behaviors she was certain would label her as actually crazy, guaranteed that. She just needed to be able to continue playing the part of normal. The problem was it wasn’t getting any easier. But when she meets Caroline, a girl who doesn’t seem to care about how she looks or how she dresses or what her friends think of her, a girl completely unlike herself, everything starts to change. She is introduced to a whole new world – one of words, of expression, of people who are confident and supportive. And she hopes to be, she wants to be, she thinks she can be, like them. Someday. Tamara Ireland Stone did an incredible job with her story. She made Sam someone readers could connect with, empathize with, like and root for. She made her sympathetic but not pitiable. She gave them a better understanding of Sam’s particular brand of Pure-O. And she showed how with hard work, medication, therapy, and the right non-toxic environment that this disorder can be managed. And she did this in a way that is captivating and wonderful, and sweet and sad and romantic and emotional. EVERY LAST WORD sheds some light on a disorder that can be debilitating. It tells a story that is inspiring and uplifting and utterly enchanting. It is peppered throughout with some truly fantastic poetry. It delivers a love story that will make readers smile. And it adds a twist that is sure to surprise. It is a gorgeous and amazing and unforgettable must read.

There aren't enough words to describe how much I loved this book! Every Last Word is an important novel that shares Samantha's story of suffering from OCD, more importantly, the obsessive part of OCD. She is a wonderful heroine to follow, because she cares so much and I loved seeing her grow more into a person who isn't acting by others' approval, but does things she wants and likes to do for herself. Very proud of her! I really loved loved loooooved these following aspects of the story: *friendship between Sam and Caroline *the idea of The Poet's Corner *everyone in The Poet's Corner *Sam x her love interest (it's not mentioned in the blurb so I won't spoil it to you if you are the kind like me who doesn't always want to know who they are right off the bat) *the therapist-patient relationship and how supportive Sam's family was; it's the perfect portrayal of how it should be -- everyone working towards the same goal, trusting each other and not abusing that trust in any way! *SWIMMING! If you didn't know, I went swimming for 8 years. I was on our school's swimming team and we took part in competitions + some individual competitions I've been to. I quit practice in my senior year of high school because I wanted to pursue other things, but this novel reminded me of how much I loved swimming and how much I'd love to pick it up again for myself. It was described very well and Sam's passion for it was very endearing. *s-e-x positivity ✓✓✓ ٩(˘◡˘)۶ *the poems *the awareness this novel spreads Also, I have to mention, I didn't see the twist coming???? I saw it coming like right before it happened but HOLY SMOKE! That was brutal and so unexpected. Note @ Tamara: this was cruel and I cried a lot; way to pack a punch like this! I liked how important this part was regarding the whole scheme of things. The author note was so important and super emotional, so don't miss that for sure! I never really thought about ableism slur that much to be honest, but this book shows us why ableism language is bad, because by using the "i'm so OCD about this and that" and "my OCD side is the reason for ..." when we don't really suffer from OCD -- it lessens the weight and struggle of people who do struggle from OCD. Anyhow, this novel was everything I hoped it would be an more! So much love and respect for the author for tackling this story so gracefully and painting an important, well-written portrayal of the struggles of someone with OCD. With an authentic voice Every Last Word is bound to please a lot of YA contemporary fans! Overall rating: 4.5 out of 5.0

Characters Samantha: It might be difficult at first to know whether or not you're supposed to like Samantha. Sure she's the main character, but she's part of the "mean girl" clique at school. Usually we're led to believe that these girls are vain, shallow, and cruel to anyone that is not part of their group. While this may be true in the beginning for some of her friends, Samantha is actually a decent person, albeit one with a dark secret: she suffers from an obsessive disorder that makes life next to unbearable. I found her to be a ridiculously strong character. High school is difficult enough, but with a disorder like this and all the trouble that comes with it, she somehow manages to keep it a secret from her friends. Looking back on it, of course keeping a secret like this is terrible and her friends aren't worth if it they'd treat her badly because of it, but for someone in high school, image can be everything, so I understand how she felt regarding the situation. The Poet's Corner: these characters were all unique in their difficulties, but all brought together by their love of writing. In high school I would have given anything to have the comraderie they seem to share. Antagonist(s) This is sort of a difficult area because there wasn't a clear villain, exactly, though there were some "characters" that added to the difficulty of Samantha's journey. Mean Girls: these are the friends that Samantha has grown up with and fits in with the best, despite some of them being horrible people. They were a little cliche in their meanness, I'll admit. Samantha herself states that she doesn't agree fully with their bullying of other classmates, but she goes along with it out of peer pressure. I can't remember coming across someone in real life that was like Samantha in this instance. The bullies that I dealt with were jerks through and through, but in the story, at least there is hope for some of the girls. Even if they wouldn't turn out like this in real life, at least in fiction we can hope for the best and see it begin to come true. OCD: I am not very familiar with OCD as a realistic disease, so I am not sure to what degree what Samantha suffered is real. It was, however, presented in a overpowering and ever present way that made me believe, for the course of the book, that I could understand how Samantha was feeling, if only for a little bit. Imagery Imagery wasn't a part of the novel that I really noticed as anything extraordinary, perhaps because it took place in the real world and it was an everyday sort of place, unlike if it were a fantasy novel. I knew, or at least could hazard a guess, what the place looked like without having to have it painted out for me. Plot/Pacing I found the writing to be fairly streamlined. It was a fairly quick read. The prose was catchy enough to be interesting without too much going on, and it left off in good places at the end of chapters so that I wanted to continue. Ending There was a fairly big surprise for Samantha toward the end that, while devastating, I was at least starting to guess midway through the book. It was an interesting choice for the author to make. In the course of the story I found it plausible, though a bit sad as the person involved in this revelation was a character that I had really felt happy with. Summary There are times when this novel can feel a bit dark because of the panic and terror that Samantha feels, but it is well worth the emotional journey that she and you as the reader will undertake.

I read this from my KU. I really enjoyed this even though it is a YA book. There is nothing wrong with it at all. I read what catches and holds my attention. This was a suggestion for me after reading another KU book and I'm glad this one caught my attention. Having teens that struggle with some of the topics in this book helped shed a little light on some of the things my teens struggled with in High School. It also helped that the author obviously did her thorough research and had supporting information on this book. This was a really good read and I enjoyed it, there were tears at some parts and that's ok too. it just means that it touched some of the parts of me that felt like I was reading about one of my teens in a way. This is all very real and happens to pretty much everyone. We all have a little bit of something in us that we read about. I gave it a five start because it wasn't over dramatic, it held my attention and it felt close to reality without the extra theatrics. I do have to say though if you liked Every Last Word, you may also like A Danger to Herself and Others by Alyssa Sheinmel. Every Last Word reminded me of A Danger to Herself and Others toward the end. No spoilers there is a part of Every Last Word that took me straight to a portion of Danger Herself and Others, both really good, both discuss different types of stress and mental health. Both Authors did their research.

Actual rating 3.5 stars. I am tossing up whether to award this a higher rating. The way it deals with mental illness, primarily OCD is masterful. The representation is top shelf. I feel accurate representation is paramount, and Tamara Ireland Stone deals with this topic sensitively through the experiences of our protagonist Samantha ‘Sam’ McAllister. But it was the tone of ‘Every Last Word’ that is holding me back. It’s hard to talk about a serious ailment without it feeling heavy or depressing, but I would have liked some more levity to break up the narrative and offer some respite. Maybe pose a great juxtaposition for what Sam has to suffer through? Additionally this was a triggering story for me personally. I have OCD, and much of the descriptions of Sam’s attacks I’ve had to deal with in the past, so ‘Every Last Word’ may have a stronger negative emotional impact on me than another reader. Plus, some of the attitudes reflected from Sam’s high school friends feels very mean-girl-esque, and I simply have no time, and low tolerance, for this type of behaviour. Though, Stone addresses this in the novel brilliantly. What we get in ‘Every Last Word’ is a brilliant first person experience of a young girl experiencing OCD, her triggers, her coping mechanisms, and how she grows and adapts throughout high school and friendships. I especially like how she was given new coping mechanisms and confidence as she faced new experiences/ outgrew old ones. There was a lovely twist that I did not see coming (though a particularly overused trope,) but the main plot is fairly predictable. The language and characters suit a younger demographic for the YA market. But the pacing is spot on, I was able to read this very quickly in two sittings. It pulled out a lot of the feels, and concludes on a hopeful note. I’d definitely recommend this to lovers of contemporaries, it levels an accurate portrayal of OCD, and has a cute romance to boot. It’s not for everyone, but I am glad I got to experience Tamara Ireland Stone’s writing. I’ve looked at her other titles on Goodreads and it seems like she writes a lot of cute light romance contemporaries, but none that have ignited my interest at this point. Let me know if you’ve read any of her other titles and what you think about them. I’m on the fence with this author.

I actually really liked this story, I don’t normally read teenage love stories because I get so annoyed at the immaturity of the characters, but this book had a hold on me! I honestly don’t know much about OCD, but I feel the author did a good job describing Sam’s thoughts and feelings and how her OCD affects her and her life. Medicine can definitely mess with your psyche and mental state if it’s not the right thing for your body or mixed with something else, I like the representation of that in this book. Overall, this was a cute book and I’m glad I read it 💜

This one kind of surprised me. I wasn't expecting to like it as much as I did. I was initially intrigued by Sam because she had an unusual problem: unusual in that I don't have any friends like her and was curious. But I was drawn in by her relatable anxiety with her friends and her life and her retreat into words, something I do too. The book also contains a surprise or two. I figured out the main one on page 83. Did you catch it sooner or later? Don't cheat! Pros: Well-written Very detailed, real-feeling Even suffering from a mental illness, Sam was relatable as a person Cons: It's a little intense in some places And a little sad in places I'm not really sure what else to say. Kind of still basking in the book hangover (which is when I usually write these) so my thoughts are kind of clouded. I've read a lot of books with realistic characters (they're my favorite, as I'm a writer and all), but this one hit in a place that a lot of the others don't. Although we've come a long way, I think there's still a lot of negative or problematic thinking surrounding mental illness and we're all a little afraid of revealing our true selves. And I think this book shows the ideal world we should be seeking out, where we find people who can love and appreciate us for who we are. And where we can really share our truest self. I think that's always been a really deep want for me and I'm sure I'm not alone in that. And I think that's why this book was particularly appealing to me. It talks about the stuff that we usually try to ignore or pretend isn't true. Hi. I struggle with anxiety and depression and insecurity, but I'm still a person. I'm still me. So I while I didn't expect to like this book as much as I did, I do like it. Every. Last. Word. ;)

I was looking for something new to read and this isn’t quite like my usual fare, though I enjoy YA novels occasionally. Mostly I read mystery or chick-lit, depending on my mood. But this popped up and I read the description and thought maybe…then I read a few reviews and decided to try it. It’s a powerful story. The characters feel more real to me than most characters do, and there’s a twist at the end I honestly didn’t see coming. I expected a different climax and at first I didn’t like that it went another way, and then I did. I loved it. I’ve cried reading this at various points, I’ve rooted for the characters, and I’ve identified with so many things. I’m a middle aged mother, a wife, a writer myself (though nothing in the realm of this), so maybe I shouldn’t identify with it, not now. Not at my age. But it brought me back to high school, to college, to my first job after college, to a few years ago when certain major life events left me reeling and struggling and trying to find my way through. There are certain themes that translate into life, no matter what stage you’re in. This book made me feel better. Made me feel stronger. It’s a rare thing for a book to sit like that for me, as much I love reading. There are certain choice phrases in it that I want to copy out, put up on my bulletin board, and remember. I read this with my Kindle Unlimited subscription and now I want a physical copy for my small library of books. It’s a keeper.