Finding Audrey

by Sophie Kinsella

From the bestselling author of the Shopaholic series comes a story of humour, heart and heartache. Finding Audrey is Sophie Kinsella’s first novel for teens, sure to appeal to her legions of adult and young adult fans all over the world.

Audrey can't leave the house. she can't even take off her dark glasses inside the house.

Then her brother's friend Linus stumbles into her life. With his friendly, orange-slice smile and his funny notes, he starts to entice Audrey out again - well, Starbucks is a start. And with Linus at her side, Audrey feels like she can do the things she'd thought were too scary. Suddenly, finding her way back to the real world seems achievable.

Be prepared to laugh, dream and hope with Audrey as she learns that even when you feel like you have lost yourself, love can still find you . . .

• ISBN10: 0857534580
• ISBN13: 9780857534583
• Publish Date: 4 June 2015 (first published 1 January 2015)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 22 January 2021
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: Penguin Random House Children's UK
• Imprint: Doubleday Children's Books
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 288
• Language: English

Reviews

[Joséphine]

Actual Rating 2.5 stars

Initial thoughts: On some levels Finding Audrey was amusing. Kinsella has a way of writing very intertwining moments and I loved the dynamics between Audrey and her brothers. However, combined with the subject matter and the caricatures that some of the characters were and the lack of depth especially in relation to mental illness didn't sit that well with me. The time frames of some of the events didn't line up either — first Audrey spent three days in bed, all anxious to face the world and then suddenly she was very gung ho about going out, all because a boy whom she liked coaxed her into it. The whole idea that a romantic interest makes everything all roses and sunshine discounts the complexity of social anxiety disorder of the degree that Audrey was battling with.

[lisacee]

Lizard brain

[boghunden]

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy.

The award for bad parenting goes to this book.
Seriously. I'm not even kidding. The mother was extremely hysterical and while I found it somewhat funny at first, it just got too much. I mean, come on, you're 40, not 400! Surely you must know that kids today actually do need their computers for school. She was just way out there! She needed some help, really. The father wasn't much better, he was distant all the time and was afraid to speak his mind. Ugh. So bad parenting. The worst! I don't think I've ever read anything like it.

That being said, I still liked the book. I definitely like Sophie Kinsella's humor, I found this book to be very funny at times, to the point where I had to actually laugh and not just smile. It was a very light read and great for a summer day.
I also liked Frank and Linus. Frank, Audrey's brother, wasn't perfect, he definitely did some things wrong, but I didn't really mind because let's be honest - which 16 year old kid doesn't do anything wrong? Linus seemed to be such a nice guy and I really liked the way he and Audrey communicated.

Some people was offended by this book, saying it "made fun of" social anxiety disorder. Yeah, sure, it told everything in a light and fun way, but it didn't make fun of the disease at all, not to me anyway. To some people, humour is a secret weapon to deal with life and psychological issues and that's what I felt this book did. I'm not saying people shouldn't get offended, I'm just saying I wasn't. Not the slightest.

I found the ending to be way too rushed! You never find out what really happened to Audrey and she gets well way too easily! Also, what happened when she ran away? Guess we'll never know.

Despite all the issues I had with this book, I liked it and had a good time.

[Leah]

This was simply amazing. I adore Sophie Kinsella, she's my favourite author, with many amazing books to her name, but even I was a bit worried when I heard she was writing a YA novel - it seems to be the trend at the mo, Chick Lit authors writing YA, with Paige Toon and Cecelia Ahern also doing that, but Kinsella blew me away.

Finding Audrey is one of the funniest, sweetest books I've ever read. I was literally sitting on a wall, reading on my break, laughing and smiling to myself like an idiot. Anyone watching me must have thought I was crazy, but Kinsella just has this way with words and she has quite the comedic touch. It was sooooo nice to laugh at a book again and Audrey's mum was freaking mint. So good. A lot of YA bloggers hate when parents aren't involved in their kids lives, but you can't say that for Audrey's mum, she's there for it all and goes as far as to threaten to throw Audrey's brother Frank's laptop out the window, to much hilarity. And the video diaries were a very nice touch in this uber digital world.

Of course the story does have a more serious side, too. Audrey suffers from panic attacks which were handled so sensitively and it made me so sad that people could act in such a way to make someone so afraid and anxious. People can be so mean, whether it's a "bit of fun" which it really isn't. Regardless, Kinsella handled Audrey's issues with a really firm, but not intrusive touch and it was so good to go on that journey with Audrey, especially getting to meet the lovely Linus. Sigh. He was so, so sweet and lovely.

This was such a good read. It proved that Sophie can write anything, any genre, she's just one of those storytellers who can do it all and it's such a pleasure to read her stories, year after year. I really, really hope Kinsella continues with both her YA books and her Chick Lit reads because she excels at both. I will happily accept two books per year please, Sophie. Finding Audrey is a must read for all teenagers, it's the kind of book I wish I'd had in school, that all teachers should champion. It's so important that mental health is taught properly, that there's no stigma attached. An illness is an illness, whether you can see it or not.

[lindsey]

I read this entire book on release day, and even though I kept telling myself to stop reading so I would have some left for the next day, I couldn't put it down. I really love Sophie Kinsella's books, even though a couple of the later Shopaholic books are a bit tedious. This is one I featured as a Waiting on Wednesday post, so I had really high expectations. Thankfully, I wasn't disappointed.

Finding Audrey is about Audrey, of course, and her life dealing with social anxiety disorder and depression. She can't leave the house, she doesn't speak to anyone other than her parents and siblings, and she wears sunglasses all the time, as she can't handle making eye contact.

Her family is supportive, and they do their best to help her recover from a traumatic experience that happened at her school the previous year. We never find out exactly what happened, but I think it's better that way. We aren't dwelling on what happened to her, and instead we're able to focus on Audrey and her recovery. Everything isn't perfect at home, though, as her mother thinks her brother, Frank, is obsessed with video games, and there seems to be a constant tension between them.

I've read a few reviews saying Audrey's mother was "crazy" and that she had as many issues as Audrey with the way she obsessed over Frank's computer usage. I don't think that's true. I really liked her mother, and I think she was just doing her best to be a good parent. One of the funniest scenes in the book, in my opinion, is when she is threatening to throw Frank's computer out of the window. I laughed out loud for a solid minute.

That's another issue that a couple of reviewers seemed to have with the book - they claimed the author was making light of social anxiety disorder, and the novel was "too funny" for such a serious subject. I have to disagree with that though. I believe Ms. Kinsella did a wonderful job of telling Audrey's story of life with social anxiety disorder, while still including a bit of levity . The book would have gotten really dark, really fast if not for the humorous moments. I also thought she was pretty spot-on with her descriptions of social anxiety disorder and depression.

Finding Audrey was an amusing and quick read about a serious subject, and I think Ms. Kinsella's first foray into YA was a definite success. I would highly recommend this.

[Kelly]

Finding Audrey is a fun and lighthearted romantic comedy, that follows the story of Audrey who is suffering from an anxiety disorder. Audrey is aware of the reader, which only heightens her story and allows us into her debilitating world. An incident has left Audrey catatonic with fear at the mention of interacting with those outside of her immediate family, instead the fourteen year old retreats to her darkened den where she watches the Shopping Network to relax. But Audrey shares her story with the entire Turner family, each playing a role in her recovery, even if indirectly. Audrey's mother is hilariously overbearing, with her life revolving around a newspaper. Handy home tips? The Daily Mail. Parenting advice? The Daily Mail. Your son shows signs of a gaming addiction? The Daily Mail. Throughout the storyline, we see her obsession with freeing older brother Frank from the oppression of video games, against his will. Their scenes together were laugh out loud funny, so unexpected from a book addressing mental illness and lifted the mood making it a lighthearted read.

The budding romance between Audrey and Linus was absolutely lovely. He challenged her, but was patient and didn't fix her per se, but aided in her recovery and gave Audrey the means to venture out of her comfort zone. Realistically, mental illness takes much more than a weekly therapist and a love interest to recover, but I appreciated Finding Audrey for it's entertainment that never failed to make me laugh, value rather than realism. I loved the Turner family unit, they were far from perfect, but such a strong presence in Audrey's life. Four year old Felix was positively charming. He's the only person that Audrey felt at ease with, and was able to take off her glasses and not face the fear of judgement. Each character had their own district personality that jumped off the pages, reducing me to fits of laughter between heartwarming moments. I absolutely adored it.

I think we've come to associate mental illness with sad and poignant storylines and it doesn't need to be dark and confronting. Audrey's illness wasn't made trivial or used as fodder to inject comedy into the storyline, but life did go on around her as you'd expect, and had nothing to do with her illness or making a mockery of her diagnosis is any way.

It was wonderfully written, lighthearted and incredibly funny. Sophie Kinsella's first foray into young adult is nothing short of a brilliant success. Laugh out loud funny, you'll fall in love with the Turner family and their quirky brand of joy, hope and acceptance. Pure entertainment with a sense of fun, this is one book you'll want to read again and again.

[meowstina]

I received an advance reader’s copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I was very hesitant when I found out Sophie Kinsella was releasing a YA novel. I worried she might just be jumping on the ‘YA is super popular!’ bandwagon instead of writing this novel because she truly wanted to. Then I read the description, and it’s so serious compared to her other books, so I was once again worried. I’m glad I gave this a chance, though, because I like it just as much as those other books, even if it is a little different.

It almost feels like a completely different author wrote this book. The narrator, Audrey, is not flighty and silly, nor is the narration that way. Audrey is a pretty grounded, normal teenager. She has anxiety, among other disorders, and every day she fights to be brave and get through her crippling fear because she was part of some kind of traumatizing event. She wears sunglasses all the time because she can’t look into people’s eyes, and she never leaves the house. Kinsella handles and speaks about anxiety really well, surprisingly well to me. Everything is so accurate, it was really nice to read about (not nice as in pleasant, but nice as in ‘ah! that’s exactly how it feels!’ You know.). The only not-realistic part is Audrey’s speedy recovery, but alas, I suppose a book can only be so long.

An issue that is just as discussed as anxiety is Audrey’s brother’s ‘video game addiction.’ Half the book is literally Audrey’s mom yelling at her brother, trying to get him to do new activities and get away from the computer. I don’t know if it was just my mindset, because though it’s meant to be amusing, the mom’s incessant (incessant) screaming is kind of irritating and actually made me feel a bit anxious. I don’t think this needed to be such a big part of the plot, and didn’t see the point of it to be honest. I suppose it’s because that’s all Audrey encountered? The story is a lot about Audrey’s relationship with her family, too, because they’re an important part of her life. Soon, her brother’s friend, Linus, becomes just as important because he helps her on the road to recovery.

So, Audrey’s current state is due to a traumatic event. Thing is, though, we never find out what it is. A general topic is provided, but that’s about it. I’m still trying to decide if this is good or lazy. On one hand, it doesn’t matter what the event was. If the event was exposed, maybe readers would be trying to figure out why Audrey reacted so badly and questioning her feelings. Or, maybe in this case it’s easier for readers to place themselves in her story. On the other hand, it’s hard for readers to fully connect to the story if there is a missing piece, and it sort of feels like the story is incomplete. Both sides are valid, but I don’t know which one I’ve chosen yet. I’m leaning toward the former, but then again, you all know how I love a finished story.

In any case, I like this book. There are a lot of things that keep it from being amazing, but there are also good things. Though most people’s experiences aren’t quite as extreme as Audrey’s, hopefully it brings awareness to anxiety disorders and helps some people feel not so alone.

[ellieroth]

Original de: El Extraño Gato del Cuento

Sophie Kinsella es, en mi opinión bastante ligera, una de las mejores escritoras de chic-lit. La serie Shopaholic es conocida mundialmente, lamentablemente la adaptación cinematográfica fue… bueno, me gusta creer que no existe. ¿Sería Sophie Kinsella igual de buena en Young Adult que en Chic-Lit? La respuesta a esa pregunta es un rotundo SÍ. Finding Audrey es una novela con la que me conecté mucho tanto como lectora como de manera muy personal.

Los que ya hemos leído a la autora sabemos que es una maestra de la comedia, siempre fiel creyente de que no tienes que hacer la mega escena para que sea divertido, las cosas más sencillas son las que te sacan las más grandes carcajadas, Finding Audrey es un gran ejemplo de cómo puedes tratar un tema tan complejo de manera divertida. Ya que no hay mejor forma de educar a alguien si lo entretienes mientras lo educas. Y digo educas porque Sophie durante el libro hace diferencias sobre las enfermedades mentales, en como la depresión es una cosa, la bipolaridad otra y como a la vez puedes tener varias al mismo tiempo. La salud mental, lamentablemente, es algo que por lo general no se toma en serio hasta que es demasiado tarde.

Me sentí conectada con Audrey porque las dos tenemos lo mismo, al leer cada una de sus peculiaridades, no podía de dejar de asentir y asombrarme porque podía sentir el esfuerzo de Audrey. Cuando en una parte dice que no puede mirar a las personas a los ojos, nunca me sentí tan conmovida porque es algo que yo tampoco puedo. Cuando dice que tocar a las personas es sumamente difícil para ella, no tienes idea la tortura que son para mí los cumpleaños o alguna fecha donde tengas que demostrar afecto exactamente por mi pequeño problema. El tocar y mirar a las personas directamente es una completa tortura para mí.

Pero Finding Audrey es más, mucho más, tiene personajes sumamente encantadores, la familia de Audrey es extremadamente loca y divertida y Linus es de otro mundo, tanta dulzura no de este planeta. Además el papá de Audrey es DILF #ggg

No voy a hablar más del libro, simplemente léelo, en serio, hasta el favor de leerlo, porque Sophie Kinsella está de vuelta, podrás leer todo su encanto en su primera novela Young Adult, Finding Audrey.

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