I’m always looking for books with diverse representation and I’m very excited to say this is the second book that I’ve gotten to read with Cerebral Palsy (CP) representation. It’s a lovely and heartfelt story about a young woman coming to terms with the actions surrounding her condition, as well as finding a little romance in the cutest way. It’s a story of family and friendship, and I was so glad to have gotten to read and review it for The Nerd Daily.
It’s My Life is the story of Jenna, who finds out that her cerebral palsy wasn’t present at birth, but was caused by a doctor’s malfeasance. Even worse, her parents and uncle have kept this from her all of her life, and just as they are pushing her to do another difficult procedure to help her with her CP, she feels her life falling out of her control. Her solace comes in the form of Julian, her former friend/neighbour that has come back to her town and is going through some struggles of his own. Jenna decides to help him, but anonymously. Through their phone chats, Jenna starts to feel something more than just friendship, but would Julian still like her if he knew who she actually was?
This story sets off to give readers an idea of what it’s like to live life with CP, it was very raw and full of feeling. Despite the setback that Jenna has because of her physical condition, you can definitely see her fighting spirit through and through, especially with how she’s attempting to deal with all of the emotions of finding out the secret her parents have been keeping from her. I loved Jenna’s personality. She’s witty but stubborn, and sticks to her convictions. However, she’s also vulnerable. She’s taking control of her life in the small ways that she can, even if it comes at a detriment to her. While she struggles with some self-esteem issues, she works through them in the best way she can.
Something that I truly loved seeing in this story was the fact that we didn’t brush aside how Jenna’s everyday activities went. Things like getting out of bed or even getting dressed are a little different when you have CP, and it was very enlightening to read. More importantly, the sibling relationships between Jenna and her brother and sister are the sweetest. Yes, they care about her well-being, but they certainly won’t leave her out of any shenanigans they’re going to be a part of.
Jenna’s relationship with her parents is a little more complicated because she’s dealing with her emotions from finding out about the medical malfeasance. The relationship becomes more strained when she decides to take action in regard to her medical decisions, because she’s determined to gain independence from them without regard to the cost. While this was something I didn’t necessarily agree with in the story, I could see where Jenna’s becoming more desperate for some control of her life. There are a few tense scenes in the story concerning this, but I do wish we’d gone a little more in depth.
The romance that is happening through text in this story is cute, and mostly going on through text messages. I don’t want to say too much about it because there’s some fun that happens that’s too sweet to spoil. While I’m here I also want to mention that I absolutely adored how Stacie Ramey included music in this story. Not just because there are some of my favourite bands included, but because music can also be a way of release for a lot of people. Ramey captures how Jenna loses herself in the rhythms and songs that play throughout the story, and they make for beautiful scenes in the book.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. There are some areas that I would have loved to see more development, but I think it would give this story a more serious tone than what is intended. The romance is sweet, but it isn’t too much, if that’s something you’re concerned with. It’s a high school story that I am excited to have on my shelf.
It’s My Life is available from Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers.
Will you be picking up It’s My Life? Tell us in the comments below!
Synopsis | Goodreads
If she wants a future with him, she’ll have to make peace with her past.
Jenna’s never let her cerebral palsy get her down. But when she discovers that her condition was actually caused by an injury at birth, she’s furious with her parents, who withheld the truth. And as they push her to get yet another difficult procedure, Jenna feels her control over her life starting to slip.
Enter Julian, Jenna’s childhood crush. He’s just moved back to town, and he’s struggling in school, so Jenna reaches out to him—anonymously— to help. Soon, their conversations are about so much more than class. She’s falling for him all over again, hard and fast. But would Julian still be interested in her if he knew who she really was? And can she find a way to take back her own narrative before she pushes away everyone she loves?
