Petula is a pessimist. Armed with a scrapbook full of freak deaths, seventeen-year-old Petula is friendless, unhappy, and scared of practically everything. Optimists Die First by Canadian author, Susin Nielsen, explores the different ways people cope with grief and guilt after a tragic event, and the slow journey to overcome these debilitating emotions.

It is clear that, since Petula’s sister’s death, she has developed unhealthy obsessions and anxieties, which stem from her incessant belief that she is to blame. Despite attempts by counsellors and an art therapy class, Petula has made very little progress. This, however, changes when new boy, Jacob the “Bionic Man” joins her Youth Art Therapy Class – a positive voice amongst the cynics.

Jacob has had his own share of tragedy, which, although he will not reveal the details, has left him with a prosthetic right arm. Much to Petula’s disgust, Jacob is paired with her to create a retelling of the famous novel Wuthering Heights. Being an audacious filmmaker, Jacob encourages Petula to work with him and produce a scene using cats as the actors – an animal that Petula’s pet-rescue-mother has aplenty. From this moment on, Petula has a friend, a friend who never rejects her despite her odd behaviour.

Beguiled by his approachable kindness, Petula begins to fall in love, however it soon surfaces that Jacob has been keeping a dark secret about his past. Once it comes to light, Petula regrets ever beginning to feel optimistic. She feels cheated and lied to, angry that she revealed so much of herself to him, but he could not be as open, too. Will she ever be able to forgive him, or refuse to have anything to do with him?

A love story for cynics, Optimists Die First, reveals how fragile life is, and how easily it is to fall back into bouts of grief and depression. Petula and her art therapy acquaintances all feel to blame for their current situations, however with Jacob’s help had begun to come to terms with the truth that they had no control over the situations. Until the truth comes out, no one realizes that Jacob is feeling the same way, too. By writing this character, Nielsen reveals that self-hatred is not always visible, and that people can be hiding many terrible feelings under the service. Yet, this does not mean that the parts of themselves they choose to show are fake.

It is difficult to have a strong opinion either way about Optimists Die First. There was nothing a particularly disliked about it, however I was not totally enthralled by the story, either. Both Petula and Jacob felt a lot younger than they were actually meant to be. Perhaps this was because of their respective child-like fears and disability, but it made their developing romance appear less serious. Nielsen’s previous novels have dealt with younger characters; perhaps her writing style is not quite right for older teenagers.

Overall, Nielsen has tackled grief in an appropriate manner, conveying the point that depression and anxiety are nothing to be ashamed of. However, these problems can be overcome, so long as you actively try to challenge yourself. As an educational book, in terms of mental health, young adults may enjoy or even relate to Petula’s experiences, but as a love story, it did not do anything for me.

This book was ok but I felt that there were a couple of problems with the portrayal of mental health that meant that I couldn't give it a higher rating.

I liked the characters, particularly the characters in the art group. What bothered me about this book was that Petula seemed to get much better just because of Jacob. I did like the romance between the two characters as it developed fairly slowly for a YA novel. The way that the other characters saw Petula's anxiety was a bit annoying as they saw it as being funny and Jacob wanted to fix her. I personally don't think what she was doing was funny and her anxiety had obviously occurred due to the traumatic events surrounding her sister's death. I didn't like the way that Petula's mental health was romanticised and it seemed to disappear when she started dating Jacob. This is really unrealistic and I would have liked it if the portrayal of the situation had been more realistic.

The plot took a bit of a predictable turn. She discovers something about Jacob's past that makes her question their entire relationship. This plot is used a lot in YA contemporaries but they always end up forgiving the other person. I think that this had the potential to be a really good novel about mental health but it fell a little flat for me. I think the story became too focused on the romance and less on the mental health of the characters. Whilst the elements of mental health and disabilities was unique I felt that the main plot wasn't too different from other YA novels which was disappointing.

I did like the how the kids in the therapy group got closer throughout the book. At the start they were only at the group because they had to be they didn't really get along and they didn't spend anytime together outside of the group so it was good to see them develop friendships. I also liked the family element that this book had. As we could see that the parents were really struggling after the death of Maxine and they both had different ways of coping with it.

I adored this book. When I first heard about it, I was really excited to read it and I'd heard a lot of hype about it in the book blogging community. However, as the release date came about, I'd heard some really mixed reviews so I didn't go into this with high expectations.

I was so pleasantly surprised. I went into it pretty blind as I didn't even read the blurb, so I wasn't sure what it was going to be about really but man I can tell you it was amazing. It was full of character development and witty characters who you fell in love with. It was about facing up to your past, dealing with grief and learning to be less pessimistic and cynical about the world.

I read this so quickly because I just couldn't put it down! Petula and Jacob were one of my favourite relationships I've read about in a while, and Jacob was just such a broken little character but he was still so funny and upbeat, trying to help those around him.

There were a few plot twists in this that I just didn't see coming at all and it broke my heart a little bit, but they were so well developed and explained and the writing was just amazing and I'm so glad I read this!

A very character-driven novel that deals with grief, anxiety, mental illness, and forgiveness. The story is told through Petula's POV. An awful family tragedy has caused her to shut herself off from the world. Filled with a mix of anxiety and OCD, Petula struggles to cope. Attending an art therapy class where the other students also struggle with the burden of guilt feels like a waste of time until she gets assigned a project with Jacob. This isn't exactly a "love cures all" type of book, though Petula does learn to cope better. I could have done with a little less emphasis on Jacob saving her, when she could have done it all on her own. The family dynamics were portrayed realistically. There was a nice layer of humour throughout the story. If you enjoy YA contemporaries with disabled characters, I'd recommend you check this one out!

While I was super excited to read this book when I first requested it on NetGalley I got a little bit scared later on because I kept reading mixed reviews about it. While I didn't hate this book I also didn't love it and it was mostly because I didn't connect with the characters at all. But first of all I need to talk about something. I know that a lot of people were not happy with this book because of the anxiety portrayal and because it kind of shows the guy as the girl's savior. While I do think this book had some problematic issues it wasn't as bad as I was expecting. Nevertheless, if this is something you think you won't like or it will be an issue for you this book is not for you.

Anyway, I have a review to write and let me start what I liked about this book. I loved the writing. It was one of those fast paced books that was quite enjoyable and while I had a few problems with it I still enjoyed the story a lot and I think it dealt with some really important things. One of my favorite things was how it showed Petula's, the main character, relationship with her parents and how they all were doing and behaving after her little sister's dead. i just think the author was amazing on portraying how dysfunctional a family can get after such tragedy because let's admit it, no on, but no one, will be the same after going through such tragedy. I also really liked to see Petula bonding with her group of friends. They were awesome and I loved how they helped each other going through whatever was happening or had happened in their lives. Sometimes I even wanted to read more about them.

However, there were still a few things I didn't like a lot and one of those was Petula herself. Here's the thing, I can understand what happened to her and why she became that way but I just couldn't connect with her at all and that got to my nerves and frustrated me a little bit. I also didn't connect with Jacob, even if I still think he's adorable as hell, but that's mostly because the book was told only from Petula's POV and we didn't know a lot about him. I did like their relationship and how it wasn't instalove but it was too fast to me. I don't think it was believable because someone like Petula would never advance so fast in her relationship after so little time. I also don't think they would stay together for that long after the end of the book. You know how some books left an open ending so you can think how they would be years later?? Well, I think their relationship wouldn't last not even a year due to a few things that happened.

I think I should need to issue the fact that some people think this book is problematic. As I said before some people think it's not a good portrayal of anxiety and it shows the guy "saving" the main character. Here's the thing, I can see why some people might think about it as a problematic portrayal because at some points Petula's anxiety is seen as being quirky and she's not being quirky. She's a girl who has serious problems due to what happened in her past and who has to deal with said problems. Now, I don't think Jacob saved her. He was involved in her development and in her getting better but he didn't do it alone because it's clearly shown in the book that when she does things she would never do before she's not only with Jacob, she's with her group of friends from therapy and, to be honest, they all help each other with their issues. There's a part that kind of ruined this thought because one of the characters clearly said Petula that "Jacob resuscitated her" but if it wasn't for it I would never say this was something problematic. As I said before, I think it's important to talk about this because while it wasn't something that problematic for me it can be for you.
Overall, this was an enjoyable book and I liked to read it. I might have had a few problems with it, and especially with the characters, but if this is something you think you would like you should give it a try.

I read this in short stints on tubes and buses while on a weekend trip to London. Usually this is not how I like to read a book but <i>Optimists Die First</i> was just so readable that I was always pleased to pick up these characters again. This was actually my first encounter with Susin Nielsen's writing but I'll definitely be picking up another of her books soon. Her characters were vibrant and real and her portrayal of the difficulties that Petula and her family deal with was sensitive but still engaging. A great book for readers 14+.

I have a complicated relationship with this book for two reasons: firstly, prior to becoming a librarian, I was an art therapist, and secondly, I have accute anxiety. I also adore cats and Wuthering Heights is my favourite book of all time.
It's almost like Susin Neilsen crawled into my head to write this book.
It's difficult for me to separate my professions and suspend my disbelief with it. The complex needs of the young people are clearly not being met by their trainee art therapist who is pretty bad at her job. I know she's a trainee but still, she 1) would have supervision to ensure she was meeting the needs of her clients, and 2) no art therapist is solely trained to one age group, even if you have a speciality. UGH. It's like in the book The Bear with the crap art therapist at the end (draw the bear attack that killed your parents, child). People who don't understand a profession should maybe speak to one to make sure there's a bit of accuracy.
I did like that they were strong and empowered enough to essentially provide their own therapy. There were very touching aspects to each character and their films. Actually, for me, those were the best parts of the book. I felt that I would have liked to know more about each of the kids.
And on to Petula's anxiety. I really did not like the portrayal of her anxiety; it felt like 'just another teen quirk' that makes her 'adorable,' like putting on her grandma chic clothes. It felt like an affectation as opposed to a serious mental illness. I get it's a teen book, and for a teen book it's written at a lower level.; it isn't a misery memoir or a self help book, but I do think it's important that the gravity of the illness is portrayed. A lot of young people suffer from anxiety and it felt a bit belittling.
I liked the development of the relationship; that felt real, and the issues with drunk driving will make a great talking point with teen book groups as will the discussion of what defines an accident, looking at both accidents in the book.

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

I have to say that I was a tiny little bit scared of starting this book. I read a few mixed reviews, and some that claimed that the book suffered from “the boy saves her from her issues“, and I was scared. But still, we needed to get to it, and we were late already, so I sucked it up and read it.

And guys, I was pleasantly surprised.

The first thing that struck me was how much I actually enjoyed the writing. This was my first book by Susin Nielsen, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. The book is told through Petula’s POV, and when she starts the book and calls Jacob “Bionic Man”, I cringed a little. But then it was super enjoyable, fun and fast. Even when dealing with super difficult and important topics.

I enjoyed the characters too. Petula was a bit weird sometimes, but I liked her quirks, and I understood them. The world is a big and scary place, and what she went through at such a young age? Yeah… it would mess anyone up.

I also liked Jacob, I liked his easygoing nature and how he faced life, but because the book is told through Petula’s POV, I felt like something was missing.

This was also my issue with their group of misfit friends. I thought there was so much potential there, but I wanted more interaction, more scenes between them. I wanted them all more fleshed out.

I thought it was great that Petula’s parents were such a huge part of the story, because their grief was palpable, and I thought it was so well represented.

My main issues with this book was actually the super fast pace and some points of the plot. Optimists Die First is super fast, and that didn’t allow for the full flesh out of some characters, but it also took away from relationship development. Like the one between Petula and Jacob.

I thought that particular relationship developed super hyper fast, and one moment they were kissing, and in the next they were taking their clothes off. It didn’t feel natural to me, at all. Petula had some pretty big issues with contact, and no matter how horny she was, I don’t believe that she would jump into a sexual relationship that fast. Also, she was super young and Jacob was her first real boyfriend, and while I could see them taking steps and it happening eventually, it didn’t feel right at the moment it did.

I didn’t feel like the Jacob “cured” Petula AT ALL! Jacob did try to bring her out of her comfort zone, but it was their group and the friendships she formed that help alliviate some of her biggest fears. She tried, she wanted to get better, and I don’t think that was all due to Jacob. But the book messes a little up when at some point it says something along the lines of “Jacob brought you back to life“. That wasn’t necessary and it takes a bit away from the story and the roles of the other characters.

OVERALL I REALLY ENJOYED THIS ONE, AND I WOULD STILL RECOMMEND IT. IT DEALS WITH SEVERAL TYPES OF GRIEF AND SENTIMENTS OF GUILT AND INADEQUACY, AND THOSE ARE SO IMPORTANT. GIVE IT A TRY.

Petula blames herself for her little sisters death. Jacob feels guilty that he survived when others didn't. Both are often consumed by their grief, and so they have joined an art therapy class. Actually, forced to join kicking and screaming is probably more accurate! But it's lucky that they did, because through each other and a bunch of other kids who have suffered one tragedy or another they begin to overcome it.

I liked the idea that this group of kids all came together, with basically nothing in common except for the guilt they carry. I think Nielsen does a really convincing job of conveying that guilt takes different forms for different people, and that even the smallest things can have a large impact on how someone feels about themselves; and the blame they attribute to themselves. Equally, I found it really refreshing that Nielsen hasn't made Petula, or any of the other kids in the group, especially likeable, in fact she is often quite honest about how petulant and irrational Petula is or how irritating some of the other kids are. I found this a more realistic portrayal. Petula knows she is silly, as do the other kids, and they acknowledge they act compulsively or strangely, like collecting information about tragedies, but this is how they each cope. Equally, some of the kids use their guilt as an excuse to be this way, and I thought this was an interesting take on things. It's great to see such an honest portrayal of these sorts of scenarios instead of trying to sugarcoat it.

I also liked Jacob quite a lot. He has a prosthetic arm due to an accident he was involved in, in which he survived and two of his friends didn't. He isn't especially affected by the prosthetic, infact he embraces it which I loved. Nielsen has done a great job of including different characters, with unique scenarios like a prosthetic arm, and showing the challenges they face. This book, for example, features an openly gay character and looks at some of the prejudices they faced.

My only niggle would be that because Nielsen has tried to tackle so many interesting issues like these, she only scrapes the surface on a lot of them. It would have been great to really get stuck in to a few of the characters back stories but the romance began to overshadow the bigger picture towards the end.

On the surface this book might appear like a light and fluffy read but it's actually really thought-provoking and filled with interesting, complex characters. I absolutely recommend it.

Petula is a sixteen year old pessimist whom suffers from panic attacks. She believes she is a realist and nothing good comes from being an optimist. She attends YART which is a youth creative art group and counselling. She also fears germs and accidents, death and generally, life and any catastrophe that could entail. Her sister Maxine died and her mum has a small army of cats to find forever homes for.

I loved the cats being named after book characters!

Petula then meets wannabe director Jacob, he has a bionic arm and also attends counselling. We also learn that Petula blames herself for the death of her younger sister, Maxine who was three and even years on now, can't forgive herself for what happened. Petula feels like she needs to keep herself safe and alive as she's here not Maxine as well and seeing how life has changed and the atmosphere the family skirt around the issue in the room with them still unattended too by proper communication. She soon learns from having to work with Jacob on a school project, the tragedy around the loss of his lower arm and subsequently that he feels built he lived and not his two best friends.

In her YART group, there is a right bunch of amazing characters which each were unique and enjoyable. I really love the evolvement of this in a book as it is used in schools or at least it was when I went to my high school nearly ten years ago now.
I enjoyed the time in the group and made a beautiful papier mache mask I still own and a folder of sketches too. It helped me through high school and even though Petula doesn't allow herself to at first enjoy it. She does and the people along with the situation too as they eventually become friends through some cool adventures.

The book deals well with trust issues and friendships as well as loss and love of course. It shows the good and bad of situations quite literally but with hilarity it places to keep it a gripping read. Thanks to the publishers for allowing me to review it for them!

Loved this book. Petula was such an hilariously OTT, crazy character, but with a heartbreaking reason why.

That is, she feels responsible for her baby sister's death, as Maxine choked on a button that Petula had sewn onto a hand-made outfit.

Petula was a great narrator and I loved watching the other YART students - especially Koula - all grow into a more cohesive group with Jacob's help, and I also really loved her friendship with Rachel being rekindled. I love how she called Jacob the Bionic Man too at first because of his arm!

There is nothing original about this story. Nothing at all. You've read it before. You'll know the "twist" from the start.

But, some books with unoriginal plots just have more life in them. I liked the narrative voice, I liked the humor, the cats, the crafts, the characters.

Susin Nielsen must have a better book in her. Surely her charm can be applied to a better/newer story? I'll check out more of her writing.

Firstly, I just want to state that I really love the front cover and title of this book. Okay, done. Now onto the review.

I have mixed opinions on this book - I found it really easy to read and flew through it pretty quickly, but at the same time I wasn't gripped, I wasn't eager to actually read more. It was just another book for me to cross off my list and add to my Goodreads Reading Challenge.

For the most part, I really liked Petula's character. After her little sister died at a terribly young age she hasn't been the same, her whole life hasn't been the same. This book deals with mental health, more specifically anxiety and in the case of other characters, depression, as well as alcoholism and grief. Very important and very sensitive subjects, which, in general I feel Nielsen writes about really well. However, I do have a slight issue with how Petula's problems seem to almost vanish thanks to this one boy? Then again, development is shown through Petula's friendship with Rachel too which helps relieve that issue.

I found it frustrating how, well, sensitive and immature Petula was when she found out the truth and how unforgiving she was. And as a result, it left me dissatisfied with the ending because I feel like these characters are better off on their own than together due to Petula's judgement. However, at the very least it makes me happy that the rest of the characters were more understanding and sympathetic to the situation and forgave him; hopefully with a bit more time Petula will too.

While I wouldn't say I felt particularly emotional towards a single character within the book, I did still really enjoy them and how versatile the selection was. Each character was very different with their own hobbies and backgrounds making them interesting to read about and learn more about and I loved all of the character development that takes place within Petula's friendship group (not that they really refer to themselves as a friendship group). It also made me happy how they all grew to like and appreciate Betty in the end.

Overall, this book was on okay read. I wouldn't really rave about it, but it is a nice time-filler if you need one.

This story was adorable, light and fluffy. Just what I needed to draw me put of this slump. I connected with Petula well, in that I am way to cautious with life. I loved the relationships the characters all formed with one another and how they were able to overcome their "guilt". However, I would have liked to read more. More about the ending, more about the others. But overall, it was amazing and I'd definitely recommend you check it out!

The story follows a girl called petula who suffers really badly with anxiety issues ever since her little sister died due to choking on a button. The story follows her making friends with a new boy called Jacob and a counselling group at her school. The only issue I have with this book is that Petula is extremely anxious over every single thing and I feel is a bit too far into the extreme for her to suddenly do everything she does in the story. I think that if she was real she would never leave her house. Aside from this I thought the book flowed well and I really enjoyed following the groups adventures throughout and couldn't wait to see what happened next.

When I saw this title, I just knew I needed to read this, and I don't even know why. I am an optimist, so dying first wouldn't have been the best thing, but I'm glad I did pick it up!

Optimists Die First is about Petula (I keep forgetting that name), who is a hard-core pessimist, in every situation she sees danger. She suffers from anxiety since her little sister died tragically. Petula blames herself for her death and now makes it her absolute priority to stay alive, because she is the only child her parents have left. But in her trying to stay alive, she forgets to actually live. Her live consists of school and YART sessions, which are group therapy meetings in which they do arts and crafts. Petula has been a crafter since she was young but now hates the meetings.

One day a new boy comes in school and he has to be his project partner and also is in the YART sessions. His coming shakes up the entire group, which normally never talked outside meetings. Jacob (I can't seem to remember any names from this book..) has been in a car accident and lost part of his arm and two of his friends. Now he has a bionic arm and a broken mind.

I loved the characters and how real they felt, they weren't perfect, they had flaws and that made it only more realistic. My favourite character was Petula, her negativity ruled her behaviour and her fear was felt grounded. There was a lot of character development which I loved! Jacob was also a very grey character (neither good nor bad), which is always very interesting to read about. The characters felt so realistic and relatable, which is a huge plus!

"Optimists believe things will always work out for the best. Optimists live in a rainbow-coloured, sugar-coated land of denial.
Optimists miss warning signs."

There were some other smaller things that I loved about the book. I loved the filmmaking aspect of this book, I don't know why, I just really liked it. I also loved the cats! Even reading the dedication: "To all the other crazy cat people. You know who you are." really made my inner cat lover laugh.

I did not see the plot twist coming, which is not usually the case. Most of the time you can already see where the story is heading before it is actually heading there. I can't say what happens but I really liked the way it was resolved and how everything came together in the end.

I give this book 4 stars because of the characters, the heavy but interesting topics and of course the cats :) I would recommend this book to anyone who loves Nicola Yoon's books and contemporary books with a heavier undertone.

General rating: ★★★★
Diversity rating: ★★★ (contains: POC, LGBT+, disability; please correct me if I am wrong because it could be that I forgot/misremembered)

Being the average pessimistic person, I felt like reading this book could be eye-opening, and really refreshing. I haven't read that many stories with pessimistic characters, up to the point where Petula, the main character of this story, is. See, she collects stories about how people tragically die, she can't walk past construction sites because there might be a chance something would fall on her, or take an elevator because she had read too many stories about that just as well. Petula wasn't born that way, her baby sister's death, whom she feels guilty for, made her look over her shoulder constantly, and only half-living because of the constant worrying and pessimism.

From what you can guess already by reading this and the synopsis of this book, this is a young adult contemporary, very character-driven story. There is not heart-stopping action at all, it's more of a life-story events, but the character growth is stunning – if you enjoy books like that, I'd definitely advice you to pick up that one. Every character in the story was interesting and well-thought-of, with their own life stories, quirks and flaws – this was definitely one of the strong suits of this book: how flawed and realistic the characters were.
This book explored anxiety as well, and it was interesting to read about it, even if, in my opinion, it could have been better handled and more realistic. Why, you ask? Let's tackle on the characters to see what I am talking about.

As you guessed it now, Petula is a very anxious and pessimist teenager. If, at times, her anxiety was relatable – speaking out, trying to reach out to new people, simply being anxious about working in pairs -, at other moments I felt like it wasn't too realistic. There's a boy in this story – name's Jacob, new guy at school, had a weird metal hand and doesn't speak much about what happened to him before he arrived. Upon his arrival and as the two of them are forced to get closer thanks to an assignment, Petula changes, and their relationship evolves in a very obvious, yet interesting way. There is no insta-love here at all, which was refreshing to read about: their relationship slowly builds up and grows, from strangers to friends to more than that. Slowly, we realize that this relationship the author is painting is one where they bring out the best in each other, which is on the one hand, super cute, but on the other hand, a bit unrealistic because...well, Petula manages to slowly get rid of her anxiety and it's all because of this boy. It seemed a bit to me like a “love cures everything” kind of trope, which I moderately enjoyed. However, I can't say I didn't enjoy their interactions, and toward the ending, the evolution of their relationship felt very realistic as well, tackling interesting and deeper issues you can't always find in teenage romances, such as losing and gaining someone's trust again.

If you love contemporaries and books giving a great deal of time and space to its characters, then I'd definitely recommend Optimists Die First. If a couple of things in the story felt unrealistic, the characters and their relationships were very real, and got me smiling more than once.

Optimists die first tells the story of Petula, a 16 year old girl with severe anxiety and OCD behaviour since the death of her sister.

This is a very intense and quite dark book. Petula worries about absolutely everything and always thinks about the worst case scenarios. I do the same all the time which is why I could relate to the character so much.

I absolutely adored the character, not only because I could relate to her but also because of… Cats. There are cats everywhere in this book and this is one of the reasons I couldn’t get enough of it. (There are also cat videos!! A book that discuss cat videos can’t be anything else than great)

I can guarantee you that the plot is mind blowing and you’ll need a couple days to get over this book..

This book is perfect for you if you loved We are all made of molecules (Which is actually from the same author!) and Kids of appetite