We Are Not Okay – Natália Gomes

Thank you to the publisher who gifted me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

We Are Not Okay is a powerful novel about what happens when girls are made to be silent. Lucy think’s that she is better than all the other girls. Hopefully if she is pointing fingers at others, no one will see the secret that she is hiding.

Ulana comes from a conservative Muslim family where their reputation is everything. One rumour, true or false can destroy futures.

Trina is known for partying. She has kissed a lot of boys, but she didn’t consent to that one night at Lucy’s party. Why does no one believe her?

Sophie loves her boyfriend and did anything for him, even sending pictures of herself to him. Why is it that she is the one being pointed at in the hallways, laughed at and spat at when it was him who betrayed her trust?

This book was extremely enjoyable to read and has so many important messages throughout that all readers will benefit from. We Are Not Okay focuses on four schoolgirls, with different issues. The issues surrounding how they are treated when it comes to their reputation.

This book is told from the perspective of the four girls and it is easy to distinguish between the four girls, their personalities and their stories. It is also shown how differently the four girls react to the bullying or shaming that is thrown towards themselves or the other girls. I enjoyed how as the book went on the girls stories got more and more interweaved. I don’t want to reveal too much as it will ruin the story but look out for little hints from each of the girls to who they share stories with.

This book is extremely well paced, and I read it extremely quickly. The story certainly kept my interested throughout. My only issue with this book was trying to get my head around all the different perspectives at first. It isn’t often that I read books with more than two perspectives. Four perspectives can be quite hard to get your head around, especially if the chapters are on the shorter side. This didn’t stop me enjoying the book in anyway though and towards the end of the book I enjoyed the four perspectives a lot. This book wouldn’t have been the book it is if we were reading only one girls perspectives.

We Are Not Okay tackles so many difficult topics, for some these may need trigger warnings. Bullying, ‘slut-shaming’, rape and suicide. These topics are extremely important to discuss, and this book discusses them incredibly well. This book never goes incredibly heavy on these issues, but it does discuss them throughout the book. I’m glad to see these issues being discussed in YA and to see that the author of this book is raising awareness of these issues. It is also lovely to see that this book is linked to an anti-bullying campaign.

This is such an interesting story that has so many important messages that everyone could use. Make sure you talk to someone about any issues you may have, stand your ground, be careful and don’t be some who hurts others. We Are Not Okay is an emotional, harrowing and heart-breaking story about four schoolgirls having to deal with some difficult issues. I highly recommend this book!