Alice Oseman, a British young adult author, published her first book Solitaire when she was 17 years old. This was followed by Radio Silence, and then her third novel I Was Born For This was published in May 2018. In her latest novel, it follows some current burning topics which are part of young readers day-to-day lives.
Talking about friendship, mental health, and sexual orientation, Oseman’s books can feel like reading a long-lost diary. In this novel, the importance of fandom is also present.
Fereshteh, who calls herself Angel on the Internet, cannot believe it. She will finally see her favourite band, The Ark. The cherry on top is that her best friend Juliet, whom she met online, has meet and greet tickets and they will see each other for real for the very first time. What an exciting week ahead of her!
Jimmy, the lead singer from The Ark, cannot believe what a big of a deal his band has become. The three-man band just had their big first gig in the US and a lot of new opportunities are waiting for them. Sadly, Jimmy’s personal demons are getting louder and he cannot make them stop from haunting him.
I read this book with very high expectations because Oseman’s other two books left a strong mark on me long after I have finished reading them. For a person who needs music in her life just as much as we need air to breathe, this book was a must read for me. It was not everything I had hoped, but I applaud the representation of so many important things which can be found in this book.
I Was Born For This is told from two perspectives by going back and forth between Angel and Jimmy. The most interesting part of the book for me was to see how an anxiety disorder can stop someone from doing what they want to do. After his grandmother died, Jimmy suffers from anxiety, panic attacks, and paranoia. He did not win in the family lottery, so the only person he calls home is his grandfather. His best friend Rowan is part of the band and tries his best to help his friend with coping. With the new possibilities for the band, his attacks are worse and the pressure which lies on him like an elephant makes it so much worse that he even considers to stop making music to stay sane.
Angel on the other hand does not care for anything that is truly important when it comes to herself and her future. All she cares about is The Ark and what the guys are doing. She practically lives and breathes The Ark. She cannot understand why Juliet does not want to talk about them 24/7. They are the reason they have met in the first place and why they are now spending a week together. Oseman explored not only the dark places of being famous and how you start being an object of someone’s fantasy, but also what an unhealthy obsession with someone or something can do to you.
At some points the plot felt a bit chaotic and seemed to struggle with the many different topics. The books ending felt too abrupt after what happened in the last couple of pages and I would have liked it to be a bit different and perhaps another chapter or two would not have hurt the story.
The message is that you can be a part of a fandom or similar, but do not lose yourself in it and remember to take a break from time to time to focus on the really important things in your life. If you are an extreme fan then someone else can feel caged in the spotlight and be not able to be themselves as well of the stage.
I Was Born For This is available from Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers.
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Synopsis | Goodreads
For Angel Rahimi, life is only about one thing: The Ark – a pop-rock trio of teenage boys who are currently taking the world by storm. Being part of The Ark’s fandom has given her everything – her friendships, her dreams, her place in the world.
Jimmy Kaga-Ricci owes everything to The Ark too. He’s their frontman – and playing in a band is all he’s ever dreamed of doing. It’s just a shame that recently everything in his life seems to have turned into a bit of a nightmare.
Because that’s the problem with dreaming – eventually, inevitably, real life arrives with a wake-up call. And when Angel and Jimmy are unexpectedly thrust together, they will discover just how strange and surprising facing up to reality can be.
