The Rest of Us Just Live Here

I've wanted to read Patrick Ness's latest for some time--in addition to good reviews, I was so impressed by his spearheading a massive fundraiser for Syrian refugees. Luckily, I enjoyed the book--though to be honest, I'm having a bit of a time being totally objective because I LOVE the premise of this book so much.

I'm a fan of YA fantasy--and it's hard not to see the trope of the chosen one get used (and over-used) again and again. In this quirky contemporary fantasy, our hero and his friends are decidedly NOT part of the chosen one clique--that honor belongs to the Indie kids, a group of smart, odd, poetry-loving kids with hipster names who tend to die frequently in conflict with some group of paranormal beings. The hero, Mikey, just happens to live there. So the book unfolds as Mikey deals with his worsening anxiety, his feelings for one of his best friends, and a complicated family life, all against the backdrop of some kind of supernatural event that involves blue light and resuscitated dead deer (among other things).

It's an odd sort of juxtaposition, though, where the major story line involves small things and a quiet plot, while big things are happening in the background (the chapter headings, which explained what the indie kids were up to, made me laugh). I didn't love the story, though I thought it was well-executed (it just didn't resonate with me personally). But the concept alone was worth reading for. Some language and sex (not explicit).