ANYTHING BUT FINE is a fantastic coming of age story!

I love the pure joy that reading a wonderful debut novel makes me feel. For me, it felt really easy to fall into Tobias's writing style and story telling. As an American reader, I enjoyed being immersed in the Australian setting, and the Aussie lingo was easy enough to navigate.

I think YA contemporaries, this book included, are important because those young adult years can be brutal as you try to find yourself while wading through all of life's obstacles. You may not even realize or want to admit that you're going through something until you recognize yourself in a character or relate to a situation in the book you're reading. I found both Luca's and Jordan's journeys endearing. Luca's whole world was dance -- being a dancer felt like his entire identity until it was ripped away from him with his injury. After he hurt himself, he had to find out who he was without dance. On the other side, Jordan has this "golden boy" persona, but he's hiding a major part of himself for fear of not being accepted. Both of their paths to self-rediscovery are windy and a bit bumpy, but they help each other to get there. Their growth was my favorite part of this story!

Matthew Backer narrates the audiobook of ANYTHING BUT FINE impeccably! He really brought Luca to life, giving this Aussie story a great voice. *Bonus: Be sure the listen to the conversation between Matthew and Tobias at the end of the audiobook! I loved hearing how they each gave so much of themselves to this book.

Overall, I enjoyed ANYTHING BUT FINE and absolutely recommend it! I am looking forward to reading more from Tobias Madden.

*Special thanks to Page Street Kids, RB Media & Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this audiobook for review.