Book Review – One by Sarah Crossan

one

I feel genuinely ashamed that I haven’t reviewed this up until now (sorry Sarah, read it months ago and there’s been a backlog!) As a result of which I’ll keep this brief and clear.

One tells the story of 16-year-old conjoined twins, mostly in blank verse (sometimes sections are huge chunks, sometimes less than a single page) and from the point of view of one of them; Grace. They can’t be homeschooled anymore and thus have to venture out into the real, sometimes cruel world of school, cameraphones, teenagers and boys.

Yes, officially, I see this being listed as “children’s fiction” or “teenage fiction” but don’t under any circumstance let that put you off. It is a hypnotic tale of two extraordinary lives told with elegance and craft.

It is also without doubt one of the most beautiful and most affecting books I’ve read in 2015.