faceless

This month I found a book that I instantly fell in love with, the moment I saw the cover and read the blurb to see what it was about. The book was 'faceless' by Alyssa Sheinmel, and is an extremely good read. The book is about a 16 year old girl called Maisie Winters, who, whilst out on her morning run, gets burnt in an accident and the story is of her recovery afterwards.
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The blurb of the book reads "When Maisie is burnt in a terrible accident, her face is partially destroyed. She's lucky enough to get a face transplant, but how do you live your life when you can't even recognise yourself anymore? As Maisie discovers how much her looks shaped her relationship to the world, she has to redefine her own identity, and figure out what 'lucky' really means." The blurb highly appealed to me, and the front cover is aesthetically pleasing and drew me in. The baby pink colouring matches well with the black spine and white lettering appearing on it. The brown hair with no face and black scribble over it is a theme which can be seen throughout the break pages of the book.(This only applies to the version of the book I have, there are several different styles of cover which can be found.)


When I read this book, I felt overwhelmed with emotion given by the book. It conveys the message of body-image and how that impacts you perfectly, and made me think how different everyone's bodies are. In reality, most of us try to look alike and as the definition of 'beauty' without even realising it, and the book presents the true reality of accepting yourself. This story is unique, and is the best read about knowing who the inner 'you' really is. It's a wonderful book and is written in a way which truly presents the inner thoughts and feelings of coming to terms with your own body and how you look.


One review, by Barry Cunningham, publisher at Chicken House, states "I'm scared of surgery - and that waking-up moment when you look in the mirror afterwards. But what would happen if someone else looked back at you, another face on your body? How would other people react? Would the 'real' you stay unchanged? This is a story like no other - Alyssa Sheinmel takes us beyond appearances to the heart of personality and the meaning of love. It's incredible."


This is a fantastic read and definitely worth it!
Happy book hunting,
-Elizabeth :)