Mini Review | Unboxed by Non Pratt

Unboxed by Non Pratt
Published On: August 15, 2016
Published By: Barrington Stoke
Genre: YA, Contemporary
Pages: 140
Format: Paperback
Source: Bought
Rating: ★★★★

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Four friends meet up at their old school to open the memory box they stowed there years ago - with five letters inside for four of them, because their friend Millie has died. When they open the box they find a new letter from Millie and discover that she has left them special instructions: permission to open her letter only if they all read aloud the letters they wrote to their older selves, revealing their deepest secrets.


What a way to start the year!
I had no idea what this book was about when I started reading and I was not emotionally prepared for what I got. This book is so short but somehow so emotionally impactful. It is more than I ever would have expected from a book of just 140 pages.

This book covers everything.
Yep, that's right, it's 140 pages and covers everything. This book deals with loss as one of the friendship group has died, we have a character struggling with coming out to her friends, one character is in an unhealthy relationship, another has a crappy home life - it is all dealt with in these 140 pages. Even more crazy is that fact that all of these topics are dealt with beautifully. This book is just written so damn well.

Friendship is the foundation of the story.
Though there are many other topics covered in this book, the heart of the story is the friendship. These four friends have grown apart over the years and despite only coming together for the sake of the friend they lost, it is clear as soon as they are together again that they are truly connected to each other through more than just a box. This is probably one of my favourite friend groups I've ever read about.

It had me sobbing.
This book was so impactful that every separate storyline affected me in a different way. I connected to every character and felt all of their struggles in such a real, raw way. It's just a beautiful book, okay?

I wanted more.
My only complaint about this book is that I didn't want it to stop. Although everything is covered so well within such a short book, I wanted to stay in these characters lives for so much longer. I suppose that's not the worst complaint to have.

Overall, I'm now desperate to read more from Non Pratt. If that is what she can do in 140 pages, I can't wait to see what she can do in 300+. This book is a beautiful story of friendship, it is written incredibly well and I would recommend it to everyone.