What a great way to dive into controversial books. To be honest, I wasn't going to read the novel but after watching the movie, and hearing a trustworthy opinion, I decided to read it anyways. It was a lot more positive than expected.

Maddie is a protagonist that it's easy to like. She is an optimist even in the darkest time. Ollie was also likable even if he was a big cliché. The relationship between the characters was compelling and it felt realistic most of the time.

For the narrative and the style chosen, it worked. The drawings complemented the story well and sometimes they were even more effective than any pretty line. Yoon found a great partner for life and for her art. It is wonderful to see a sweet collaboration.

I cannot talk about the representation aspect, and I understand the point of views made by people that suffer from SCID. I was not a fan of the plot twist at he end, it felt gimmicky and it made me uncomfortable when I first heard of it.
But having experienced the story once, I now had the knowledge of the story and was able to think about it better. In part, it was positive for the experience of the book having seen the movie first.
The book was about, abusive/negligent parents and how it affects the family dynamic and the children. Unfortunately, it's a reality for many and I feel that it was never dealt in a light tone and I don't see the "wish fulfillment" everyone claims the book has. All I see is a teenager that was lied to all her life and now discovers that her mother decisions severely affected her health. Sure, she doesn't have SCID but after the treatment received Maddie's immune system is terrible, she is still sicker than the average person.

At the same time, this is still my experience and I have to be honest and as so, I give it a 3,5 stars. Despite it's negative aspects, I think it still caries an important debate about family and how complicated they can be.