Official Review: How Real by Renae McBrian

[Kourtney Bradley]

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "How Real" by Renae McBrian.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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How Real is a fiction novel written by Renae McBrian and published on June 4, 2015. McBrian is a mother and wife, and resides in California with her family. Although the book is a work of fiction, McBrian has publically announced that there was a time in her life when she suffered with some of the same issues as the main character.

Sophomore year has just ended for sixteen-year-old Emmalyn Walker, and her main concern is having the time of her life with her two best friends, Lacy and Jessa. Emmalyn keeps a journal and recounts her summer activities throughout, giving an insight to the kind of carefree lives they enjoy. The girls all seem to be very close, and spend all of their time together bouncing back and forth from each other’s homes to parties. Emmalyn’s mother is trusting of her daughter, and lets her drive her car around town, unlicensed. The girls make some irresponsible decisions while given this trust, and in result, Emmalyn’s mother takes the car keys and her driving privileges away.

On the first day without the ability to jump in the car and take off with her friends, Emmalyn is suffering through an intense hangover and sleeps most of the day away. It’s the Fourth of July, a big event in their hometown, and Emmalyn and Lacy plan to go to the “block party” celebration to watch the fireworks show. Lacy ends up ditching Emmalyn for a boy she’s trying her best to impress, and Emmalyn ends up watching the show with one of the most popular girls in school, Katie. After the show, Emmalyn heads home to find Lacy and the boy she was trying to win over making out on her couch. Casual banter between the girls results in Lacy scouring through Emmalyn’s mother’s alcohol, resulting in the two drinking their selves in to restlessness. They end up moving to the car to cool down from the summer heat trapped in the house, and wind up falling asleep, or passing out, I should say. Emmalyn wakes to the sound of her cell phone in the backseat, and accidentally releases the brake while reaching for it, resulting in a terrible accident that she can’t take back.

The rest of the summer and start of Junior Year are nothing short of torture for the sixteen-year-old, and she’s trying to make it through the day without facing a battle with internal or external enemies. Things finally start to look up for Emmalyn when she makes friends with a new neighbor, Larissa. However, the rollercoaster decent from happiness starts quickly when she starts spending time with Drew, the strange boy who doesn’t seem to care what people think.

How Real is so full of emotions, that at some point I started to feel as if I were in the story and this was all happening around me. I was amazed at the insight and thought processes that went in to telling a story that is so dark and twisty, yet pulling towards the happiness of light. There were several moments where something surprising would occur, and I would truly be surprised. The issues raised in the book involve very graphic self-harm, and is not recommended for those who could not handle reading about such realistic depression. I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars, and would be likely to read it again. I’ve read few books where you can actually feel the pain that the characters feel, but this is certainly one of them. The hurt that Emmalyn faces is so engulfing, that the small parts of joy throughout will feel like coming up for air. Emmalyn is a strong character, and I felt like after meeting her in the book that I have felt her presence in real life. There were some small typos and grammatical errors, but nothing that would sway me away as a reader.

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How Real
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[gali]

Sounds interesting and unique! Thank you for the lovely review.

[Kourtney Bradley]

@gali thank you!

[kimmyschemy06]

Sounds like an interesting book. It seems like something kids today will learn a lot from. Good job on the review.

[Heidi M Simone]

Wow, this sounds like a book that would be hard to forget. It's amazing how the author used some of her own experiences to write this novel. This was a great review and definitely has me interested in the story!

[Kourtney Bradley]

Sounds like an interesting book. It seems like something kids today will learn a lot from. Good job on the review.

I agree completely! It's perfect for the young adult genre because of this! Thank you!

-- July 20th, 2016, 7:48 am --

Wow, this sounds like a book that would be hard to forget. It's amazing how the author used some of her own experiences to write this novel. This was a great review and definitely has me interested in the story!

I definitely recommend it! It's amazing how she used some of her own experiences to make a story so engulfing.

[barb429]

Sounds like an interesting book. I think it definitely sounds like something that teenagers dealing with depression could relate to.

[Kourtney Bradley]

Sounds like an interesting book. I think it definitely sounds like something that teenagers dealing with depression could relate to.

That's exactly what I thought. Thank you!

[Rachaelamb1]

Good job on the review! And Congratulations to the author! Sounds like she did an excellent job in creating a story that is realistic and touching.

[Kourtney Bradley]

Good job on the review! And Congratulations to the author! Sounds like she did an excellent job in creating a story that is realistic and touching.

Thank you! And she definitely did!

[Msarnold6]

This is an excellent review! Thank you for an insightful glimpse into the novel. It certainly entices readers to choose this book.

[Kourtney Bradley]

This is an excellent review! Thank you for an insightful glimpse into the novel. It certainly entices readers to choose this book.

Thank you very much! I really appreciate the feedback.

[bookowlie]

Great review! You made the book sound so interesting. That's high praise that you felt like you were right in the story. I am going to take a second look at this one.

[Kourtney Bradley]

Thank you so much for the feedback @bookowlie!
This author definitely deserves some attention, and you will not be disappointed!

[HoldenCaufieldsMom]

Really amazing review, it sounds like a great book! I'll put it on my shelf! Books that allow you to empathize are the reason I love to read.