This past Tuesday, Eliza and Her Monsters by Francesca Zappia was released into the world, and you all need to get a copy. Now.

I was an Eliza beta reader about a year and a half ago, and I finished reading my hardback yesterday. All the praise that I had already given the beta version? Oh, wow. Magnify that by a hundred. This book is fantastic. Here are my 5 reasons for why you need NEED to read it.

1) Fantastic Characters--

It's a well known fact that Chessie makes amazing, multi-layered characters, the type to delight fans of all ages (cc: Made You Up). Her characters feel flesh and blood. They make you want to cry and scream, and you get frustrated on their behalf. Chessie's attention to detail makes her characters come alive, with their own little habits and phrases. And with such fantastic characters, you're guaranteed to be engaged in the story, even if you don't always agree with what the characters do.

Eliza and Her Monsters - Francesca Zappia

2) Breaking Gender Norms--

The romantic interest in this book is a hulk, former football player and now fanfiction writer and a selective mute, with a soft voice. The main character is a girl with greasy hair and social anxiety, and she's this super popular creator of a webcomic. Society tends to portray female creators as being Nice, Polite Women - women need to comprise, to smile more often, etc. Here, we have another story to rival that. And many of the side characters also break gender norms. I don't know about you, but I'm very pleased to have a story where the characters aren't in these flat cardboard boxes of what we expect (e.g., alpha male). This also makes the characters feel more real to me.

3) The Unique Formatting--

You can look at several of the Goodreads reviews that mention the photos - here, for instance. Or just at look at the EpicReads post of the first two chapters. You can see the inclusion of the Monstrous Sea webcomic pages, and the prose transcription beneath. You can see private messages between the characters - the moderators of the webcomic and Eliza, the romantic interest and Eliza. You can see forum interactions and forum profiles. Most of the YA books out right now don't have this amount of layering within their stories. Horror YA sometimes includes pictures, and other fandom related books might have some stories, some fanfiction--not to this extent, not to this level of metaness. See point below.

4) Unlike Anything Else You've Read--

This book has been compared to Fangirl and Afterworlds and Nimona, because every book needs to be compared to something, so you have an idea of its marketing. It's a fact of life that you build on schemas that people already have of the world. But this book is unlike anything else that you've read. You only get Cath's fanfiction in Fangirl, some of the story from the main character in Afterworlds. Nimona started off as a comic. None of these is quite the same as Eliza and Her Monsters. Here, you get the main character's creation and see how she interacts with her fans, and you see how fanfic writers interact with the creator and the fandom. You also get to hear about a series of books that she loves, too. Chessie has posted this online - the Children of Hypnos story. The main character has a drive to create after the fandom that she loves no longer exists. You have access to that story too. There's this amazing level of metaness in this story that ties so well into the themes of creation, fandoms, etc. I repeat: unlike anything else you've read.

5) So Easy to Relate to--

If you're reading this book, there is a good likelihood that you will relate to SOMETHING in this book. Whether it's the main character's social anxiety, the need to create, the desire to interact with the fandom, or just loving how the fandom interacts-- there is something for everyone. And you know that Chessie has interacted with or been a part of fandoms, because it shows in her writing. It shows in how fandoms a portrayed. Marieke Nijkamp wrote the blurb, "A love letter to fandom, friendship, and the stories that shape us, Eliza and Her Monsters is absolutely magical." Yes, yes, yes. A love letter to fandom and friendship and stories. Yes. 100% true.

READ THIS BOOK!

PS - This wonderful novel got a starred review from Kirkus, Publisher's Weekly, Booklist, and School Library Journal.

PPS - Here is my original pre-review: I read a manuscript of this book about one year ago to date. If you like Made You Up, you will most certainly love Eliza! Chessie brings back her trademark endearing humor in another wonderful mix of adorable romance, quirky characters, and multilayered plotting (plus the cool formatting here, which is typically reserved for YA horror, but hey, Eliza is just that awesome). I would also recommend this book to fans of Fangirl and Afterworlds.

Release Date: May 19, 2015
Source: Edelweiss
Published by: Greenwillow

Made You Up - Francesca Zappia | Goodreads

Reality, it turns out, is often not what you perceive it to be—sometimes, there really is someone out to get you. Made You Up tells the story of Alex, a high school senior unable to tell the difference between real life and delusion. This is a compelling and provoking literary debut that will appeal to fans of Wes Anderson, Silver Linings Playbook, and Liar.

Alex fights a daily battle to figure out the difference between reality and delusion. Armed with a take-no-prisoners attitude, her camera, a Magic 8-Ball, and her only ally (her little sister), Alex wages a war against her schizophrenia, determined to stay sane long enough to get into college. She’s pretty optimistic about her chances until classes begin, and she runs into Miles. Didn't she imagine him? Before she knows it, Alex is making friends, going to parties, falling in love, and experiencing all the usual rites of passage for teenagers. But Alex is used to being crazy. She’s not prepared for normal.

Funny, provoking, and ultimately moving, this debut novel featuring the quintessential unreliable narrator will have readers turning the pages and trying to figure out what is real and what is made up.

You can read my original interview with Chessie here and my second interview, which offers you the opportunity to win an annotated ARC, here. You can see my original thoughts on this book in this post. Also, if you're interested in this book, you could look at the quotes I've added. See how funny Alex is???

The prologue of this book hooked me in easily. It's true that some other YA contemporaries probably have chapters with younger versions of their MCs, but this beginning felt different. There was a sly humor, a great control in how the daily life of seven-year-old Alex was portrayed. The Freeing of the Lobsters was, no doubt, a wonderful start to this novel not just to show us Alex prior to the onset of her schizophrenia (and establish the themes and layered questions of this novel: how much of this was real? was Alex already have a hard time distinguishing between delusion and reality at that age, or was this normal for a seven-year-old (albeit one with a vivid imagination)?) but also Alex and Mile's personalities before the world hardened and chiseled them into teenagers struggling to cope with their new realities. And so, from the prologue and the first chapter until the very last, I was hooked to this book.Of all of Chessie's characters, Alex and Miles are my favorites. In the past, I've told Chessie that her manuscripts have very "Chessie characters." I've struggled to explain what this means, but Made You Up transcends that description. I was reminded of a Maggie Stiefvater novel; all her characters are unquestionably produced by her, there's a certain quality to them that you start to recognize once you've read enough of her work. So, Maggie Stiefvater is clearly the one writing and developing the characters, but in her novels, her characters also become their own people, independent of the creator. This is what Chessie has achieved in Made You Up, and damned brilliant she is for doing it in her debut novel. Authors will spend years before they have the level of control over their authorial voice that she already has. This works well to her advantage with the story being told too: because Alex is such a real character and her hope so pervasive, the question of what is real and what is delusion is that much harder to decipher. This control aids her already well drawn plot and effective, multi-layered portrayal of Alex and her schizophrenia. Because Alex is this kind of character and her delusions are real to her, they are also real to you as a reader.

Alex is a brilliant role model for all readers, teenagers and adults. She is full of hope. She wants to go to college, to live a normal life. Her struggles with schizophrenia are peripheral to that hope. She is NOT broken. Her determination is one of her defining characteristics: she wants to be able to function all on her own in the real world and doesn't like her medication or seeing her therapist, but she recognizes that, despite her reservations, these treatments help her, and will help her succeed in her goals; there is no sign of that trope where medication or therapy is an evil, and thank goodness for that. To see Alex as she interacts with her sister is both heart-warming and funny. Alex's humor -- the general humor, jokes, and funny characterizations in this novel -- liven the questions of the narrative. Alex also works at a restaurant and gives most of her money to help her financially struggling parents. How great of a character is she? Funny, responsible, determined, hopeful, smart; and her character growth only makes her feel that much more developed and three-dimensional.

Miles surprised me. I had heard so much about Alex and him from Chessie that I was floored when I saw what a jerk he was to Alex in the beginning; but the great thing is that Alex pushes back. So then I started to flip the pages for more of Miles, to see how he would provoke Alex and to see how she would respond. Honestly, it reminded me of two cute little kids in a sandbox, and I wanted to smush them together from the first. I can say, with one hundred percent sincerity, that I had not expected to ever like another arrogant romantic interest with asshole tendencies, but Miles has changed the game. He knows that he'ssmart, and he has a little bit of an elitist attitude about his classmates, and he has some emotional and social problems, but he's well-adapted to living his life without focusing on those problems. And the more he interacts with Alex, the more we get to see that shining golden heart, the vulnerability behind the arrogance with his regard to his intelligence. You could probably even compare the way Miles reads to the way Cath from Fangirl does; she doesn't always come off as being kind or socially aware or adept, but she's got her own determination, humor, and sterling qualities, similar to Miles. Some of Miles's antics also remind me of the pranks and fun in Paper Towns. Chessie's characters are as smart and funny as John Green's characters yet still remain realistic.

The romance is plain adorable. I told you that from the start, I was rooting for Alex and Miles. They have similar humor and hopeful outlooks, and their chemistry is obvious in the several games of twenty questions they play. But you know what's the best thing about the romance between Alex and Miles? It's what Chessie said herself in her interview: "They don't fix each other, they just understand each other and make things a little easier to bear, like any struggle gets easier when you have someone to share it with."

This book has a lovely portrayal of mental health, as somewhat discussed above, given how ordinary both Alex and Miles feel as characters. They are two people with their own struggles who do not need to be fixed; they like the world they live in and have found their own coping strategies. The plotting of this book is also marvelous. To convey a sense of Alex's schizophrenia, the plot works in several layers of symbolism, several scenes of delusion v. reality - you decide what's what, but then as you do that, you realize that THAT is Alex's daily reality. An effective, layered approach to mental illness. Parallel plots work in tandem with Alex and Mile's individual character arcs to enhance their development and the portrayal of mental illness, further working at the stigma that is so prevalent in society today. And in the background, we have a host of wonderful, funny side characters who reminded me of The Breakfast Club and who give their high school a well-rounded edge and unique quality.

What's not to like about Made You Up? Alex and Miles are fantastic neuroatypical characters with struggles that feel authentic to their character and not just a characteristic of mental illness. They're well developed and their romance will make shippers happy. Alex's voice is humorous and hopeful. The plot is layered, serious yet fun; keeping you entertained while keeping you guessing. You want something different from the usual YA contemporary thoroughfare? Take it with a shot of twenty questions and diversity in Made You Up.

If you're interested in this book, I'm giving away an annotated ARC!

I've got a special treat for y'all today. A wonderful interview with Francesca Zappia, the author of MADE YOU UP, which is a 2015 spring debut title that you've already seen me rave about, oh, multiple times. You, too, can rave if you win the awesome giveaway in this post...

Release Date: May 19, 2015
Source: Edelweiss & ARC
Published by: Greenwillow

Made You Up - Francesca Zappia | Goodreads

Reality, it turns out, is often not what you perceive it to be—sometimes, there really is someone out to get you. Made You Up tells the story of Alex, a high school senior unable to tell the difference between real life and delusion. This is a compelling and provoking literary debut that will appeal to fans of Wes Anderson, Silver Linings Playbook, and Liar.

Alex fights a daily battle to figure out the difference between reality and delusion. Armed with a take-no-prisoners attitude, her camera, a Magic 8-Ball, and her only ally (her little sister), Alex wages a war against her schizophrenia, determined to stay sane long enough to get into college. She’s pretty optimistic about her chances until classes begin, and she runs into Miles. Didn't she imagine him? Before she knows it, Alex is making friends, going to parties, falling in love, and experiencing all the usual rites of passage for teenagers. But Alex is used to being crazy. She’s not prepared for normal.

Funny, provoking, and ultimately moving, this debut novel featuring the quintessential unreliable narrator will have readers turning the pages and trying to figure out what is real and what is made up.

First off, you can read my previous interview with Chessie, in which we discuss the portrayal of mental health in YA, comparisons to her novel, her favorite scenes to write, what she thinks readers can expect from her work, and what books define her as a reader.

I've already read and LOVED Made You Up, and you'll be able to read my review on April 14th, but this comes first. Without further adieu, let me welcome Francesca Zappia, author of Made You Up, to Christina Reads YA. Here's our interview, with a fantastic giveaway to follow.

A.) For those who are unfamiliar with Made You Up, do you have an elevator pitch for the book?

Girl with paranoid schizophrenia is determined to get through her senior year of high school unscathed; boy from the past shows up with a monkey wrench.

B.) In the prologue, you introduce the idea of "the lobster tank" and an old childhood memory and/or delusion from Alex's PoV. Why lobsters in relation to paranoid schizophrenia?

I agree, references to WWII and Nazis crop up all the time not just in literature but in television and movies as well. The references to Germany and Nazis in MYU all spawn from the close relationship Miles had with his grandfather (who was a pilot in the Third Reich's Luftwaffe), and from the way Miles's classmates see and treat him. Miles was always German--I included it because I love Germany, and I find it an interesting and beautiful place--but I saw a lot of people in my own high school throwing around the word "Nazi" as if it was some kind of funny evil creature that only popped up in movies. So many Germans feel they can't express a love for or pride in their country because of what's happened in the past. Miles's classmates call him "the Nazi," a term with a weight Miles feels very acutely, and Miles learned to hide his Germanness to keep himself safe. Much more skilled writers than I have taken on the difficult topics of genocide and oppression that spawned from Nazi actions during WWII. I feel it would have been distasteful and out of place to relate those to anything happening in MYU, so I focused on this other facet instead.

E.) What is the thing you most hope to have gotten "right" in MYU?

It's definitely been the response to the book, and how supportive so many people have been. Readers, book bloggers, booksellers, other authors--the genuine helpfulness of people in the book and YA communities honestly surprises me every time. I wasn't brought up to expect a lot of help in what I do, so I appreciate everything anyone does, even if it's just mentioningMYU in a tweet, or saying they're excited to read it.

H.) I'm always looking for book recommendations and I'm sure other readers are as well. What have been some of your favorite books that you've read recently? Or, what have been your favorite fellow 2015 debuts?

Most recently I read THE MIME ORDER by Samantha Shannon, the second in the Bone Season series, and it really drew me in to the series! As for 2015 debuts, though, in this past month or so I've read Ilene Gregorio's NONE OF THE ABOVE, an amazing book about a girl who finds out she's intersex; MORE HAPPY THAN NOT, Adam Silvera's debut pitched as a YA Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind; ZEROBOXER by Fonda Lee, an absolutely awesome YA sci-fi about zero-gravity boxing with some delicious world building and a tight plot; and SIMON VS. THE HOMO SAPIENS AGENDA, which just about everyone has been talking about, and yes, I can confirm it is cute enough to make you barf sparkles.

I.) Can we have a hint as to your next project?

Are you looking for some really great 2015 young adult (or new adult) titles to pre-order with a gift-card? Or maybe you just want to mark your calendar with these new releases...

Because let me tell you, they are AWESOME.

1. The Mime Order - Samantha Shannon on January 27th, 2015
(https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20889470-the-mime-order)

• Book 2 in the Bone Season series (7 total!). Futuristic London + clairvoyency powers + dystopia between humans, clairvoyents, and a mysterious race called the Rephaim? A story told in a very cinematic style - gritty, dark, and full of action? OH, HECK YES. I've submitted my pre-order because this was awesome!

2. Stone in the Sky - Cecil Castellucci on February 25th, 2015
(https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21469053-stone-in-the-sky)

• Book 2 in the Tin Star duology. YA science fiction set in space + colonization efforts of humans and many, many races of aliens + girl trapped on a space station as the only human + survival + gold-rush-like elements + political intrigue + a huge galactic struggle.... Epic science fiction you should NOT miss.

3. The Winner's Crime - Marie Rutkoski on March 3rd, 2015
(https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20443207-the-winner-s-crime)

• Book 2 in the Winner's trilogy. Set in a Greco-Roman inspired world, a forbidden romance between slave & master + LOTS of political intrigue, class and racial tension between two countries. Games, strategy. Paging Kristin Cashore fans, specifically those who liked Bitterblue: you do not want to miss this sequel - it DEFINITELY raised the stakes from book 1, The Winner's Curse.

4. The Walls Around Us - Nova Ren Suma on March 24th, 2015
(https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22859565-the-walls-around-us)

• Orange is the new Black Swan + beautiful writing + seriously check out an excerpt because WOW WOW WOW to that first chapter. Bloody ballerinas + girls juvenile detention system + mystery/suspense + a tribute to girls in all their complexity. Nova Ren Suma's books are unlike any other in YA, and her writing a dream.

5. Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda - Becky Albertalli on April 7th, 2015
(https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22754644-simon-vs-the-homo-sapiens-agenda)

• Coming-out coming-of-age YA with great voice, humor and heart. Great & huge character cast + adorable romance + grinning so, so hard + wonderful character development. Paging Stephanie Perkins fans, Lauren Oliver fans, and (probably) fans of Jennifer Smith's This Is What Happy Looks Like.

6. Crimson Bound - Rosamund Hodge on May 5th, 2015
(https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21570318-crimson-bound)

• 17th century(?) or 1700s France meets Little Red Riding Hood meets The Maiden with No Hands. Fairy tale retelling that's inspired by its original material but is something completely its own, not bound by retelling demands. Complex characters + fascinating magical creatures + doomed but determined protagonist + romance like in Cruel Beauty + Arthurian elements + layered and unpredictable plot ===> Rosamund Hodge strikes again with pure gold.

7. Made You Up - Francesca Zappia on May 19th, 2015
(https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17661416-made-you-up)

• Alex is a high school senior struggling to tell the difference between reality and delusion, and is very much determined to go to college despite her struggles. Fans of We Were Liars, Stephanie Kuehn, John Green, and The Breakfast Club: helllooo! Unreliable narrators + layered plots + rereading necessary to look at the details again + heartbreaking revelations + psychological twists + quirky/funny, smart characters + a side cast that rounds out the unique high school Alex attends. Definitely a different contemporary -- and one you will WANT to read asap :).

Kinda sorta what I said in the video, but much more abbreviated, ha. Or, if you want to try already released books, I've also talked about my top 12 young adult high fantasy recommendations here. (Yeah, Thursdays/Fridays/okay, really whenever I end up editing videos = the day I discuss on the blog lol regardless of topic.)

Do you plan on reading any of these books? Have you read any of these already? Which books are on your most anticipated of 2015 list?