The Love Letters of Abelard and Lily by Laura Creedle
Genre: YA Realistic Fiction
Blurb (on back of book):
When Lily Michaels-Ryan ditches her ADHD meds and lands in detention with Abelard, who has Asperger’s, she’s intrigued—Abelard seems thirty seconds behind, while she feels thirty seconds ahead. It doesn't hurt that he’s brilliant and beautiful.
When Abelard posts a quote from The Letters of Abelard and Heloise online, their mutual affinity for ancient love letters connects them. The two fall for each other. Hard. But is it enough to bridge their differences in person?
This hilarious, heartbreaking story of human connection between two neurodivergent teens creates characters that will stay with you long after you finish reading.
MY OPINION: **
I really tried to love this book. I really did. I tried my absolute hardest to get into it, to like the characters, to understand how everyone was feeling, but I just couldn't. There were just so many things about it that just didn't click with me. I could definitely understand why it was such a loved book from the many reviews that I read but I just couldn't get into it.
I honestly tried. As I said, I really tried to connect with the characters. But Lily annoyed me to no end and Abelard seemed more like a side character rather than the main character.
Lily was a girl who was suffering from ADHD. She meets Abelard by breaking a wall. Seriously. Breaking a wall. I thought that the book started off slow and it never quite got to the climax. She's impulsive so she kisses him in the principal's office. This can't be a spoiler since it happened in basically the first chapter. The thing that annoyed me about that whole fiasco was Abelard's reaction. If someone randomly kissed me, I'd be grossed out and angry. But Abelard was just like "Okay."
Lily's comprehension of words was confusing. I realize that that's how some people with ADHD (or maybe most people, please don't judge my knowledge) hear things but it honestly got on my nerves because I spent a lot of my time trying to fill in those words.
Abelard wasn't a huge part of the story because I never got to read from his perspective, I never got to understand who he was, and I never really got to connect with him. I honestly would have liked the book better if it was from Abelard's point of view. He's on the autism spectrum but he's super smart and kind, though things like time sometimes set him off.
Lily's parents are a huge part of the story. I feel like parents are a trend now in books. Bad parents, good parents, annoying parents, overprotective parents, etc. Lily's mom is nice but I thought she came off as a little bit overprotective, though she had her rights. Lily's dad lived in Portland and was said to be on a farm but turns out, nope, he just has another family. I didn't like her dad or mom, which is unusual.
Abelard's parents were sweet, especially his mom. I loved her understanding of Lily and Abelard.
Lily and Abelard's relationship never seemed quite real. I didn't even know they were dating for a while: I thought they were just friends who randomly kissed once. That annoyed me because I love romance and that was one of my reasons for reading this book.
Iris was a strange little sister. Lily felt like she was in her shadow which was unusual and unique because generally it's the other way around. Iris is a super-genius who goes to a special school for geniuses like her. I liked her spunk.
To be completely honest, this took me a lot longer than I thought it would because I had to physically force myself to read it. I don't mean it in a bad way, but when a book doesn't hook me, I just don't really want to read it.
I would recommend this book to readers who are looking for a serious read full of drama, romance, and fun characters.
Main Character: Lily
Sidekick(s): Abelard, Iris, etc
Villain(s): ADHD, autism, love, etc
Realistic Fiction Elements: This was all very real to life.
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