On the Spectrum is a great story. Captivating the interest in this age group is a challenge, but Jennifer Gold does it admirably. The reader jumps right in with Clara and her famous ballet mother. Clara has eating issues to deal with which are completely realistic to the average reader. After a social media snafu, Clara goes to live with her father in Paris. Here she truly bonds with her six year old brother that she never really knew - who's on the Austism spectrum. As Clara and Alistair grow together through the summer, they realize they have a lot more in common than the thought. This excellent book could have received five stars but because of one section with foul language (enough to make it rated R current movie ratings) it drops the overall rating to three. There are instances of acceptable under age drinking and other curse words used throughout. An excellent story with great writing.

This was a very sweet YA contemporary novel about a girl with a borderline eating disorder and her family. Clara is the daughter of a famous ballerina, whose obsession with exercise and "health" has rubbed off on her daughter. When a school counselor takes a concerned interest after Clara is found weighing her food portions in the science lab, her mother realizes that maybe this wasn't the most healthy example. After some Twitter drama pushes her over the edge, she agrees to go stay with her estranged father in Paris for the summer and get to know her six year old brother Alastair who is the "on the spectrum" in the title, the autism spectrum. Can you imagine, having food issues in Paris? It's certainly a struggle for me.

I loved the sweet realism of this book. Clara's mom isn't awful, just misguided, and she definitely grows as a character throughout the course of the novel. Clara's relationship with her little brother is fantastic, too, and getting to know her dad and stepmother better seemed very realistic. I enjoyed this one a lot and I'm glad I took the time to read it.

Rating: 5+ stars

Author: Jennifer Gold

Expected release: sep 2017

While this is genuinely one of the best books I have ever read and not because it was cute or fun but because the writing was just that good. I would not recommend it for everyone. It does have a lot about body insecurities which can be hard to read even if you don’t have an eating disorder. I can’t personally speak to how well this portrays eating disorders because I don’t have one. However, I can speak a bit more on how Alistar is portrayed because while I also don’t have Aspergers, I have a host of other mental issues that can present similarly. In my own personal opinion, both disorders were portrayed wonderfully in a way that doesn’t give into stereotypes but makes the reader able to really empathize or sympathize with the characters. Jennifer Gold does a fabulous job with illustrating the characters in a way that makes them pop right off the page.

On the spectrum follows Clara, who after one of the teachers catches her weighing her food, gets sent to the school counselor’s office for an intervention. Ever since she was little Clara’s world class ballerina mother has put immense amounts of stress on eating “healthy” even going as far as to confiscate her Halloween candy. After the incident with the school counselor which leads her mother to realize what a terrible parent she has been (duh!), and a “twitter war” (seriously!), it is decided Clara will go live with her estranged father, stepmother Mag, and stepbrother Alistair, in Paris. Clara is not exactly excited for this summer of sibling bonding with Alistair, who’s on the autism spectrum, except for that it is an escape from her crazy life in New York. But it turns out to be a lot better than she had imagined especially with the very hot baker Michel, who lives downstairs. Together with Michel and Alistair, she begins to come to terms with that she really does have a problem that goes beyond just “eating healthy”. Just as Alistair helps her with “being on the spectrum”, as he likes to call it, she helps him and is able to create a better understanding between him and his family.

As a person with an eating disorder, I'll admit I found this rather triggering. I wasn't expecting that. I found myself defaulting to old behaviours, brought back to my mind by the book. That was a terrible shame.
However, it was a sweet story and I loved Alistair.

There are a couple of signs that a book really WOWED me. If I finish it within a couple of days, it's a given. But, whenever I feel compelled to immediately write a review, well then you can be sure it's a winner.

Clara doesn't want for much of anything, but her life is anything but easy. Growing up as the daughter of a famous ballet dancer has put enormous pressure on her going back as far as she can remember. She's always felt as if she can't measure up to her beautiful, graceful, and excessively thin mother. So it's no surprise that she's developed an eating disorder. Maybe not the binging and purging or wasting away type, but still. Under the guise of healthy eating, she's obsessively concerned with everything she puts into her mouth. And who can blame her? She's just following her mother's example, after all.

When things go too far, however, she finds herself sent off to visit her estranged father for the summer. Sure, it's in Paris. But it also means she has to spend the summer with her stepmother and a brother she doesn't even know. To make matters more difficult in her mind, he's on the autism spectrum. Will they be able to help each other?

There are so many important things going on in this story, things that almost any young person or adult can relate to. There's a nontraditional, blended family as a result of divorce. There's a love interest, of course. Because what young adult story wouldn't have one? And then there are the more serious issues, eating disorders and children with autism spectrum disorders.

This is the rare young adult book that I actually feel safe recommending for truly young adults. It provides a true look at real issues faced by many young people without delving into the culture of sex, drugs, and alcohol so prominent in many of today's books marketed toward young people. A great story!

*Trigger warning: contains eating disorders and lots of discussion about food*

This book was such a beautiful little gem and I urge you to read it.

Clara grew up with a famous Ballerina mother who was unsurprisingly, super healthy and had a variety of different eating disorders and food-related anxieties which she had passed down to her daughter. When Clara's father asks her to come and live with him in Paris for the Summer to look after her half-brother Alastair, she is less than thrilled. Having only met him once and had heard him been described as being "on the spectrum," Clara wasn't sure how to deal with this little six-year-old boy. During her time in Paris, she gets to know her brother, begins to overcome some of her own issues, deals with some of the psychological repercussions of her disorder and creates strong friendships with the characters.

Now, whilst part of that summary sounds a bit clinical and perhaps a bit boring, it is far from it. In the first half of the book, the eating disorders and the lives of the mother-daughter duo are emphasised greatly, so we can come to understand the complexity and the severity of the food issues. The second half of the book is an honest look at how somebody who has no experience with Autism, then comes to terms with the way that her little brother may be classified as "different" to other children. Throughout the book, both Clara and Alastair help each other and the relationship is such a beautiful thing to watch blossom and will hopefully educate some readers on the Autism spectrum a little bit. I would highly recommend reading this gorgeous book, it truly is a heart-warming read.

4 stars. This book was such an unexpectedly lovely discovery.

To be honest, I expected little more than a cute romance with an autism subplot. I’m so glad I was wrong.

On the Spectrum is the story of a girl who goes to Paris to live with her estranged father and half-brother after being diagnosed with orthorexia. There is a romantic element to it, and while it was cute enough, this book is so much more than just a love story.

This book is, at its core, a story about a girl and her brother. I loved watching Clara change just from being around Alastair and his clear-headed, straightforward perceptions of the world. I also really appreciated the evident care which was taken with how Alastair was depicted – not as some kid with occasional tics, but as a real human being who just perceives the world a little bit differently.

I’ll admit that out of all the relationships in this book, the romance was by far the least compelling. I liked Michel well enough as a character, but his personality was largely built on his being French. And not to mention, their romance kind of came out of nowhere – at one point they’re on a date and being all sweet and tender, and I was like, whoa. Did I miss like, fifty pages of relationship development or something?

On the other hand, the other relationships in this book were far more satisfying. I loved Clara and Alistair, and I loved how wonderfully realistic Clara’s relationship with her mother was too. Shitty-YA-parent is a far overused trope, and I really appreciated the way Jennifer Gold portrayed their relationship: flawed, but fixable.

On the whole, On the Spectrum was a real gem – heartwarming and lovely in a quiet, understated way. I’m so glad I read this.

This book was very sweet. I loved the relationship between Clara and Alastair. I'd never heard of orthorexia, but can think of several people who are probably on its spectrum as well. Getting into Clara's head was helpful and investing, if that makes sense. Oh, and Paris doesn't hurt either!