No Spoilers!
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
I was very surprised how much I liked this book, considering that, for some reason I still really don’t understand, many don’t. I love The Land of Stories series by Chris Colfer and I also enjoyed his book Struck by Lighting (which is a very different style than this book), but that didn’t hit me like this one did. It’s been a long time since a book has made me laugh this much – or cry this much. Be prepared for a roller coaster of emotions, especially if you are going through that time in your life where you are getting ready to or have just left home for the first time – The threshold of adulthood. It really captures that “the first time reality of growing up hits you” feeling that at the time I read this, I really related to.
It’s the story of a road trip told from the perspective of four friends who are seniors in high school gearing up to go away to college. They are all dealing with their own issues of identity, family, romance, and secrets. However, some people find the characters are a bit flat, and I won’t argue with that- even though they each have interesting stories, their personalities don’t really shine through.
It’s an adventure grounded in reality but Chris Colfer’s experience with fantasy clearly shines through. So while everything that happens COULD technically happen, don’t expect it to be completely realistic. Like the title says, it ends up being “stranger than fanfiction.” (However I think it’s important to note as I have seen some people be frustrated by this: this book is not about fanfiction. It does have a bit to do about fandoms and one character writes fanfiction but that’s about it.)
Overall it’s a great read (with diversity and LGBTQ rep!) about waking up to the reality of real life. (Omg the ending had me bawling 😭 even though you see it coming, it hurts – but so does life). It has a lot of surprisingly serious messages in what appears to be a light-hearted book about friends on one last hurrah before they go their separate ways.
Life Is Just A Blur 