Book Review: Made You Up by Francesca Zappia

Title: Made You Up 

Author: Francesca Zappia

Release date: March 19th 2015
Pages: 448
Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Mental illness
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
My rating: 5/ 5
Source: Bought

Synopsis:

Reality, it turns out, is often not what you perceive it to be—sometimes, there really is someone out to get you. Made You Up tells the story of Alex, a high school senior unable to tell the difference between real life and delusion. This is a compelling and provoking literary debut that will appeal to fans of Wes Anderson, Silver Linings Playbook, and Liar.

Alex fights a daily battle to figure out the difference between reality and delusion. Armed with a take-no-prisoners attitude, her camera, a Magic 8-Ball, and her only ally (her little sister), Alex wages a war against her schizophrenia, determined to stay sane long enough to get into college. She’s pretty optimistic about her chances until classes begin, and she runs into Miles. Didn't she imagine him? Before she knows it, Alex is making friends, going to parties, falling in love, and experiencing all the usual rites of passage for teenagers. But Alex is used to being crazy. She’s not prepared for normal. 

Funny, provoking, and ultimately moving, this debut novel featuring the quintessential unreliable narrator will have readers turning the pages and trying to figure out what is real and what is made up.

(taken from goodreads)

Review:

Made You Up is by far the second best book I've read so far in 2015.

It has been one of those few books that really draws me into the story. To the point where I feel like I know the characters in real life. The kind of book were you get easily attached. It's just a genuinely good book.

The main character in this book is Alex whom suffers from schizophrenia. I had never read a book that featured a character with said illness so I can't really compare it to anything, but I loved the way in which it played through the story. It led to so many beautifully written passages and one of my most favorite things: an unreliable narrator. When you read a book with an unreliable narrator, things can get pretty interesting. You start to read and read and read without knowing anything for certain. I love the feeling of not knowing because it keeps you engrossed in the story and wanting to know what's going to happen next. All of that happened in this book. As well as plenty of plot twist. 

This book was a full-on roller coaster of emotions. There were awesome happy times and funny times, but there were also some serious heart-wrenching times. Quite frankly, the perfect balance of everything I'd want in a book. All of the characters felt so real, not to mention utterly relatable. In spite of her situation and how some people perceived her, Alex never took crap from anyone and she always stood her ground. She was also a very quirky and witty character and I loved that about her.

I also loved Miles, the love interest int his story. Although he could be a total jerk sometimes, I found him to be mysterious and interesting and also caring. He was also a perfect example of how we should never be so quick to judge anyone since we never really know what's else they have going on in their lives. 

When it comes to romance, Francesca Zappia clearly knows what she's doing. She created one of the most cute and special romances that I've ever read about. Cute because of the actual root of the whole relationship (which I wont spoil for you. You NEED to read this book) and special because it was one of those were there is actual progression of time for the relationship to develop. The characters started out not really being too fond of each other, mainly due to their uncertainty, but eventually their feelings begin to reach the surface and the outcome is- well- imperfectly perfect (let's just put it that way).

If you're looking for a genuinely good story about mental illness with an amazing romance featuring intricate and deep characters that will keep you glued to the story then this is definitely the book for you. 

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