Aaaaaaa.
I can hardly feel. It hurts.
So, because I really don't know what to do with myself now, here you have my thoughts on the book. I'm not about to say it's a "deeply relevant" story that "tactfully handles a delicate subject" - because if you're looking for reviews, you're probably thinking of buying it, in which case you've already read the synopsis - in which case, all that is redundant.
Instead, I'm going to tell you what it was like to read All The Bright Places.
Finch says something interesting at one point in the book, something that really resonates with me: "it's not lying if it's how you feel". Which, I think, sums up the impression this story left on me. At heart, it's a moving mass of great, genuine emotion that seeps through everything - yeah, even the mandatory YA romance cheesiness. It's honest, and real, under what looks like yet another "deep" novel for teens. Of course, it's to be commended for the accuracy and grace with which it depicts ...huh...a great deal of things, actually - but many times I found myself thinking "well, that's ever so sweet and aesthetic, but it just isn't realistic, that wouldn't happen in real life, right?" Well, maybe I /was/ right. Maybe it's a cute lie.
Or maybe not.
Maybe it's not lying if it's how you feel.
See, understanding where Niven was coming from while writing this is important. Understanding what her book WANTS to convey is important. It's by no means a masterpiece, but it made me feel things. And, I mean, isn't that what art, in any of its countless forms, is supposed to do?