✨Book Review✨
Before We Were Blue is a fantastic YA novel that explores eating disorders, sexuality, depression, and suicide. Side note... There are a slew of triggers in this one.
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The story is told from two perspectives, Shoshana and Rowan, two girls in a rehabilitation centre for eating disorders. Their shared experience creates an unbreakable bond between the girls, even though they both have their secrets.
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Even though this novel is dark, there is a great message within, so I think it's an important book to read. I would like to thank the author for writing about something so real. And thank you @netgalley for this Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.

An amazing book you cannot stop reading until the last page. This is a stunning story that uses dark humor to portray two teenage girls with different personalities and their friendship as they deal with disorder, suffering, and recovery.

Thanks to the publisher for providing an eARC of Before We Were Blue in exchange for an honest review.

Before getting into this review, I think it's important to mention a few things about where I approach this book from. First off, Before We Were Blue is set primarily in an eating disorder facility and a lot of both of our protagonist's journeys are heavily reliant on their EDs. I've never had an ED so I can't speak to any of the accuracy there, but I have put a lot of research into how non-competitive EDs can be written and as far as I'm aware, this book abides by a lot of the precautions a lot of therapists recommend in ED media (i.e. the characters are frequently weighted but no weight is expressed, little to know weight-loss specifics are described in detail, ect.). One of our protagonists, Shoshana, is also Jewish and a few of the other characters make some jokes about that but as a non-Jewish person, I'm a lot less equipped to talk about whether that veers into the offensive than a Jewish reviewer would be (I'm fairly sure this is OwnVoice in that regard though).

Moving on to actually talking about the book, sic-fics are not my jam. I've just never really been a fan of 'teens suffer and fall in love with each other's suffering' books but I still cried at the end of this one because it's exceptionally well written. Shoshana is an easy to root for protagonist with a solid moral compass and a really empathetic situation, but for me the highlight actually ended up being Rowan's chapters even though I hated her at the beginning (which I think is kind of the point). Rowan's chapters are written in 2nd person and addressed to Shoshanna which I think was a really smart way of showing the unbalanced way the girls' dynamic starts out. I can't really talk about why I ended up loving this where I've hated other sic-fics without talking about the ending, but it subverted my expectations in a way I really appreciated.

Book Review for Before We Were Blue by E.J. Schwartz
Full review for this title can be found at: @fyebooks on Instagram!

This was an important and intense book. By reading this I felt like I really was inside the mind of someone with an eating disorder and it really taught me alot.
This book was very heartfelt and emotional and really the kind of book you'd have to be in the right mindset when reading.
I'm really glad I read this book but it was quite heavy in places.
Very happy to see the trigger warnings at the front of the book.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for letting me read Before We Were Blue for my honest review!
Rowan and Shoshana are girls that are in RR, a rehab for those with eating disorders. The girls are widely different from each other. Shoshana being the supposedly perfect, naive cheerleader and Rowan being tough and having no hope or trust in the world. While they're different they become connected and this book goes through their lives inside and outside of RR.
I gave this book 3.5 stars. I enjoyed the premise and getting to see inside the world of eating disorders. I don't know personally how it's like, but with the classes I have taken in the past and documentaries I've seen E.J. Schwartz seemed to convey it well.
Rowan was a difficult protagonist to like at first. She was rude, mean, and manipulative of Shoshana and everyone around her. Thankfully, she had a well formed character arc and by the end of the book I was happy for her.
I really liked the cheerleading portions as well and seeing how toxic they can be especially when fame is involved.
Overall, I probably wouldn't reread this book, but I'll definitely recommend it to people. It was enjoyable, just nothing super spectacular.
Go read Before We Were Blue by E.J. Schwartz September 14th, 2021!

Before we were blue

There is many triggers in this book which are true to life. It is a well written and thought out book. I actually enjoyed this book. It deals with the real side of what some people go through when in harder circumstances. Rowan I connected to the characters

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me a complimentary eARC of Before We Were Blue by E J Schwartz in exchange for my honest review.

Before We Were Blue is told from the POV's of Shoshana and Rowan - two girls who are at a residential treatment center for eating disorders - R&R. I have never had an ED so I am unable to speak to the accuracy of the portrayal of the ED treatment and the experiences that both girls go through.

Rowan is not a particularly likeable protagonist - she is guarded, can be very cruel, manipulative, and in the beginning is not actually ready to get "well." She has been through so much in her young life and her traumatic experiences are brought up throughout the book, and finally she processes them in the end & makes the decision to recover. Shoshana is a competitive cheerleader and struggles with her figure due to being in the spotlight in a reality TV show that centers around the cheerleading squad she is on. Her cheerleading coach expects perfection, and Shoshana struggles with comparing herself to others (understandably) and the pressures of looking a certain type of way on camera.

Rowan & Shoshana develop a sort of friendship/"relationship" but it is hard to get behind. Throughout the book, there is a heavy emphasis on the fact that Shoshana is Jewish. It is frequently brought up - through nicknames "Bagels & Lox", jokes at her expense, and it got honestly annoying to keep reading about it. I saw in another review that the author is in fact Jewish - so no intention of sounding or coming off as anti-Semitic - but it felt off.

Overall, this is a vulnerable journey of two girls struggling with their eating disorders together and separately. I found the book very well written, but it took me a long time to get through and it fell flat to me.

TW: eating disorders, talk of suicide, self harm

This book dives deep into the minds of teenagers as they navigate their eating disorders and how that affects their lives. Such an intense and interesting read!

This book was incredibly heartfelt even if at points it was a bit triggering for me. I think the premise was so important.

This book tells the story of 2 teenage girls who are in a treatment facility for an eating disorder. I connected with both characters and was instantly invested in their stories. The girls come from very different backgrounds and situations. One was raped and has a mother with an eating disorder and the other is famous competitive cheerleader. They are strongly connected and fall in love with each other. The story centers around their struggles, their recovery and what landed them both in a place where they have an eating disorder. The book gives an honest look at what it is like to have an eating disorder without making it look glamorous. Without spoiling the story, the ending really surprised me in a good way.

*I received an copy of this book in exchange for my honest review*

This is a honest story of two young girls, their friendship, and their eating disorders. While the subject matter is tough, this book handles it well and shows the real struggles that young girls who suffer from eating disorders face. The characters are lovely, charismatic, and multidimensional. I loved one of them from the beginning and grew to love the other as she came into herself throughout the novel.

I flew through this book, finishing in only two days. I was so invested in the characters and their journeys and relationship with each other that I just couldn't put it down. I would recommend this book to friends over and over again.

Please note that this book does contain discussion about eating disorders, sexual assault, and suicide.

Amazing, heart wrenching book about two girls who meet at a rehabilitation center for teens with eating disorders. The deeper narrative focuses on the reasons behind Rowan and Shoshanna's EDs as well as their relationship, which at times seems extremely co-dependent. Beautifully written, this book stayed with me for quite awhile after I finished it. The author includes a diverse cast with from a myriad of backgrounds and does an excellent job showing the ups and downs of recovery.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC.

Brilliant protrayal of eating disorders, does not glamorize it in any way. Had heartbreaking moments but seeing the girls being able to stay strong and at times overcome battles was great to see! The writing style was interesting, I can't believe this is the authors debut! Will definitely pick up Schwartz's next novel.

***Thanks to NetGalley for providing me a complimentary copy of BEFORE WE WERE BLUE by E J Schwartz in exchange for my honest review.***

2.5 STARS

Soshana, a cast member on a cheerleading reality show and Rowan, reeling from sexual trauma meet at an eating disorder treatment center, both invested in remaining thin (sick). In order to recover, each must choose to embrace treatment, even if it means leaving the other behind.

I identified more with Soshana, the “good” patient, who was nice, more likable and initially braver. Her mom pressuring her to cheer and disregard treatment advice felt realistic. Rowan’s defense mechanisms and desire to escape also felt authentic. The multidimensional characters were the strongest part of BEFORE WE WERE BLUE.

Debut writer E J Schwartz’s powerful word-building was consistent throughout the book, though at times the pacing was uneven and the story became bogged down with detail not central to character or plot. I loved the backdrop of competitive cheerleading.

The treatment center bears no resemblance to anything in the United States, without insurances companies limiting treatment and unlimited months of inpatient treatment.

I was uncomfortable with Schwartz’s use of several phrases that readers could interpret as antisemetic, though Schwartz is Jewish and her intent obviously wasn’t anti Jewish. In one case the Christian atheist Rowan referee to Shoshana’s “Jew curls” and a Christian adult nicknamed her Bagel and Lox. I would have been devastated if either happened to me and I’m concerned about a non Jewish reader thinking the cute phrases would be appropriate to use with Jewish friends. Again, I’m 100% positive Schwartz meant no harm and that she and I approach Judaism from opposite ends of the spectrum. I checked with another Jewish atheist friend who had the same cringeworthy response as me. I respect Schwartz’s #OwnVoices different experience and also prefer to err on the side of not using phrases that could be fine between two like-minded Jewish people yet otherwise cringeworthy.

I would have rated BEFORE WE WERE BLUE another star if not for the two phrases or if those phrases had been addressed as anti Semitic or at least inappropriate. The phrases are enough to make me unsure about whether I’d recommend this otherwise above average book.

Before We Were Blue touches on some very difficult stupids, i.e. eating disorders. The journey the characters go on is quite realistic, and relatable for some. The plot flowed well and kept me glued to the pages. The title, cover, and words hold a powerful message about "feeling blue" and mental health.