Reading With Tyler

Name: An Absolutely Remarkable Thing
Series: The Carl’s
Author: Hank Green
Publisher: Trapeze
Format: Physical Paperback & Audio (2 chapters…)
Genres: Young Adult, Science Fiction / Science Fantasy, Contemporary, LGBT
Spice Rating: Behind Closed Doors 🌶️🌶️

Rating:

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Review:

I remember when Hank Green announced that he had a book coming out thinking ‘wrong brother! Hank can’t write books’ and I was wrong. I can’t say why I never picked up An Absolutely Remarkable Thing – honestly it’s probably because I felt out of that area of the internet and the forgot about it. Luckily for me, Andy didn’t! And he recommended this to me to fulfil a prompt of read a book under 400 pages and it was Sci-Fi! Which I really do want to try and read more of.

I am so glad I read this – whilst I do not like April May in the slightest, I loved her friends, I loved the story she was telling and I got very Armada and Ready Player One by Ernest Cline feelings from this! The idea of a different species challenging the human’s to see if they were worth it (who knows what it means, but it) was an element I had been excited to see appear again! Not to mention the idea of the joint almost game in the form of the Dream. I had a great time, truly.

I mentioned I do not like April May – I think this was the point. She’s the character who never wanted internet fame, but very quickly becomes wrapped up in it and kind of craves it to the point that she makes stupid decision over and over again and that’s infuriating as a reader. Her friends however, seemed genuinely into the situation for the puzzle of it all (and the money – at least at the start) and I found all of them to be likable! I have complete soft spots for Andy and Robin though!

I thought that Hank’s commentary on how internet fame can change someone, even good someones, was important. At a time where children are growing up saying I want to be a youtuber or I want to be a content creator as it’s a field of work that people are more and more recognising as an option, but one that you choose to go into. But there was a time when it was quite accidental – people just made and uploaded videos and for some, it took off. I can’t help but wonder how much of his own experience with his brother, navigating internet fame through Nerdfighteria, went into this?

I read this as part of my 24 hour reading challenge, but as I mentioned it was also on my September TBR so I was really hoping to get to it. And the science-fiction elements of it really was what I needed after reading Anathema. It at no point felt ‘too’ science-y, meaning I couldn’t understand it. Any of the science elements were explained as there were other characters who also weren’t very science-y. I think Hank Green wrote a great science fiction – but I’m new to the genre, so take that with a pinch of salt.

When I got to the end I really wanted to find out what book 2 was about, because in a way book 1 felt wrapped up – though if that was the ending I’d think it would have been quite unsatisfying. So, I am definitely glad that there is a book 2.

“You can only do so much pretending before you become the thing you’re pretending to be.”