Take a photo of a barcode or cover
booksarethenewblack 's review for:
Instructions for Dancing
by Nicola Yoon
You can see all my reviews here: Books Are The New Black
Ouch. I was not expecting this book to break my heart! This is such a cute, thought-provoking, emotional, and heartbreaking story. There’s some magic realism mixed in too. I was expecting a cute rom-com type book and got a lot more from it.
I could see this book playing out on the screen. The fact that our main character, Evie, is obsessed with romance novels and frequently points them out in her life, is quite entertaining. Evie is jaded. Her parents have gone through a divorce and she knows an ugly little secret about it. It’s ruined the idea of what her father was to her. In addition, it’s ruined her to love. She’s completely closed off and doesn’t believe it’s worth it if everyone just ends up in heartbreak.
Then we meet X. Oh gosh, wasn’t he such a great character! I loved how open he was to life but it’s not just on the surface. He has his own tragedies in life and I think he ran into Evie at the perfect time.
One of my biggest issues with this book is the pacing. The dancing was rushed and we jump time so quickly, it was hard to remember why it was important to the story. I would have loved more of their relationship unfolding in the dance room. One of the most important elements of this book, the visions, are just pushed to the side as well. It was such an interesting aspect and I would have loved a lot more of that. She was supposed to learn her lesson from it and it was kind of minor.
The plot itself was very enjoyable. It’s rather touching and I love that we explore whether or not love is worth it. Is it better to love and have lost than never loved at all? There’s a lot that Evie has to figure out, in regards to her dad and her love life. I think this is such a relatable book for teenagers. I remember thinking similar things with love at that age and not knowing. The answer is yes. It’s always better to live in the now and love while you can (IMO). ❤
Overall, I had a fun time with this book and had a hard time putting it down. Although there are some character and pacing issues, it didn’t take away from the message. It has some very sad moments. Nicola Yoon talks about how she was going through a lot of pain when writing this book. You can feel her heartbreak coming through with this one.
Ouch. I was not expecting this book to break my heart! This is such a cute, thought-provoking, emotional, and heartbreaking story. There’s some magic realism mixed in too. I was expecting a cute rom-com type book and got a lot more from it.
I could see this book playing out on the screen. The fact that our main character, Evie, is obsessed with romance novels and frequently points them out in her life, is quite entertaining. Evie is jaded. Her parents have gone through a divorce and she knows an ugly little secret about it. It’s ruined the idea of what her father was to her. In addition, it’s ruined her to love. She’s completely closed off and doesn’t believe it’s worth it if everyone just ends up in heartbreak.
Then we meet X. Oh gosh, wasn’t he such a great character! I loved how open he was to life but it’s not just on the surface. He has his own tragedies in life and I think he ran into Evie at the perfect time.
One of my biggest issues with this book is the pacing. The dancing was rushed and we jump time so quickly, it was hard to remember why it was important to the story. I would have loved more of their relationship unfolding in the dance room. One of the most important elements of this book, the visions, are just pushed to the side as well. It was such an interesting aspect and I would have loved a lot more of that. She was supposed to learn her lesson from it and it was kind of minor.
The plot itself was very enjoyable. It’s rather touching and I love that we explore whether or not love is worth it. Is it better to love and have lost than never loved at all? There’s a lot that Evie has to figure out, in regards to her dad and her love life. I think this is such a relatable book for teenagers. I remember thinking similar things with love at that age and not knowing. The answer is yes. It’s always better to live in the now and love while you can (IMO). ❤
Overall, I had a fun time with this book and had a hard time putting it down. Although there are some character and pacing issues, it didn’t take away from the message. It has some very sad moments. Nicola Yoon talks about how she was going through a lot of pain when writing this book. You can feel her heartbreak coming through with this one.