In September Kate Scelsa made her debut with the YA novel, Fans of the Impossible Life. The book follows in the traditions of YA literature focused on the inner workings of teenagers who struggle with mental illness during their high school lives. The book reads similar to Stephen Chobsky’s classic The Perks of Being a Wallflower yet tells its story in an entirely different way. The story follows the lives of three high school students: Jeremy, Mira, and Sebby. All who are dealing with their own issues of sexuality, mental illness, and family.
The most unique aspect of this book is the narration style. Many of the most popular young adult novels are told from the first person perspective. This gives a certain feeling of closeness to the characters. It has become almost expected that coming of age novels will be told in this style. Scelsa plays with this expectation by changing the perspective with each character. The chapters alternate between the three characters with Jeremy’s chapters in first person, Mira’s in third, and Sebby’s in second. This gave a unique idea of the characters personalities that are not often seen.
Jeremy is the classic confused young adult main character. Mira’s life is more complicated and requires more of an outsider’s perspective on her story. Sebby is conflicted and desperate and uncomfortable in so many aspects of his life. This plays well in second person. It makes him hard to grasp while also putting his story on you in a way that forces you to feel for him.
This book is worth reading simply for its fantastic innovative narrative style. Yet it is also wonderful and heartbreaking. It is one of those stories that will stay will you and make you eager for what Scelsa will do next.