.jpg)
Synopsis:
Kiko Himura has always had a hard time saying exactly what she's thinking. With a mother who makes her feel unremarkable and a half-Japanese heritage she doesn't quite understand, Kiko prefers to keep her head down, certain that once she makes it into her dream art school, Prism, her real life will begin.
But then Kiko doesn't get into Prism, at the same time as her abusive uncle decides moves back in with her family. So when she receives an invitation from her childhood friend to leave her small town and tour art schools on the West Coast, Kiko jumps at the opportunity into hold her back spite of the anxieties and fears that attempt to hold her back. And now that she is finally free to be her own person outside the constricting walls of her home, Kiko learns transformative truths about herself, her past, and how to be brave.
Rating: 5/5
I had received this book from my South African book swap partner and now new friend, Ruby (@rubyraereads) and I was super excited to get to it after seeing the hype about this book. I won't lie, I thought this book was going to be another clichè but it honestly was not in this case.
I was gripped from the very beginning and I ended up finishing this book in about 3-4 hours. This was one of the books I took on my holiday to Durban, you can check out the link to that post at the end of this one :)
This book was heartwarming, heartbreaking and definitely frustrating at some points. I could not turn the pages fast enough because well, Kiko was extremely relatable and you honestly didn't know where everything was going to end up.
Everything is told from her point of view and I liked that the book focused a lot on her growth as a person. And I was so excited to read about another Asian character. HOORAY FOR REPRESENTATION! I also enjoyed that issues such as low self-esteem, social anxiety, neglect and abuse because one can never have enough books that display how damaging some issues can be.
Characters:
Kiko:
Kiko was obviously my favourite character, mostly because I did relate with her in terms of her anxiety and just having trouble being herself. Kiko deserved so much more than what her family gave her, from the beginning she deserved love, especially from her mother and it made me both mad and disappointed that she didn't get it.
However, her character development is really remarkable to me and I just loved that she decided that she comes first. A lot of us don't realise how much we put others first until we ourselves are falling apart. Kiko did make some mistakes, that I cannot say because of spoilers but you'll realise that that was definitely a character flaw of hers. She could have handled the situation better but didn't because her mind wasn't in the right space and she overlooked very important things.
But her character is good in terms of helping readers see that sometimes caring about what you want is not selfish.
The Mother:
Straight up... I have nothing nice to say about Kiko's mother.
Her mother was terrible. She always made Kiko feel... less than. Honestly, you don't find characters like her but it's terrible how she behaves. She is the exact opposite of a mother. She is so selfish and like, the way she emotionally manipulates Kiko is disgusting.
And as you continue reading, she somehow manages to do the opposite of character development and just infuriates you more. She is just... one of the worst characters out there and not because she was written badly but because you just want to punch her in the face. (ง •_•)ง
Jamie:
Total sweetheart. Oh my Dear God I want to marry the guy!!!!
Okay wait, let me be more formal in my approach, I'll fangirl on Twitter （＾∀＾●）ﾉｼ
Jamie is the type of guy that books lack... much like a Peter Kavinsky but not quite because their personalities are worlds apart. And he appreciates art??!!! Not because it's Kiko's art... no, because he himself is a photographer and that itself is art. And he is so nice and not because he's trying to be more likeable for Kiko or because he has some facade he has to maintain; it's because that's genuinely him. No agenda whatsoever. There are not a lot of male book characters that are like this or maybe I haven't discovered them as yet but Jamie is definitely one of my favourites. And he did something stupid in the book okay? Things that just made things more difficult for my girl Kiko and that is not on :(
But he is a precious cinnamon roll and I love him (✿◕‿◕✿)
Hiroshi:
The Mr Miyagi of the novel. The father Kiko deserved but unfortunately was just a father figure. Nevertheless, he helped Kiko discover herself and that was honestly the best part of the book. He was what she needed and he honestly was such a great influence on her. It made my heart so happy :)
He is very inspiring and just makes everything so incredibly easy for her and just... honestly wants the best for her and that is what Kiko needed at that time. In conclusion, he is a complete gem.
I'd rather not talk about the other characters as I don't want to steal the complete joy of reading the book and meeting them (not that all of those characters are joyful, to begin with).
I highly recommend this book to anyone 13 and above because it teaches a lot of important lessons that girls and boys at that age need to be made aware of.
Thank you for reading my review and I really hope you guys give this book a chance :)
Link to my time in Durban is as follows:
My Instagram and Twitter handle is @zestasia_reads so please give me a follow :)
Hope you have a lovely weekend and remember to sprinkle kindness wherever you go!!!
-zestasià
This sounds so lovely 😍
Looking forward to reading it