February, for lack of anything better, is the month of romance. It’s the month of St. Valentine, of paper hearts and red roses. Even if you couldn’t care less about the love aspect of Valentine’s Day, it is still a time to enjoy a box of Russell Stover’s chocolates. So, in the spirit of the season, I offer you the gut-wrenching romance known as Five Feet Apart.
Now, some of you may have seen the 2019 movie adaption by the same name, starring Cole Sprouse and Hayley Lu Richardson. I won’t disparage the movie in any way–I found it to be beautifully made and executed–but I will say this: the book is almost always better than the movie, and Five Feet Apart is no exception.
Five Feet Apart tells the story of two teens with cystic fibrosis who check into the same hospital for a round of treatments. Stella and Will seem to be as different as can be; Stella is meticulous and careful in everything she does from her health to her to-do lists, while Will is simply waiting for the day he turns 18 and can legally decline all of the hospital visits. And, besides the obvious in which they clash, it is also physically dangerous for them to be less than six feet apart, lest Will jeopardize Stella’s chance at a lung-transplant. But, when has love ever been logical?
Five Feet Apart is both tragic and funny, heart-warming and heart-breaking. You will cry, that much I can tell you, but whether it's from sorrow or an overload of romantic rapture is up to you. It’s a story that pulls you in from the first page, and doesn’t let you go until the last. Rachael Lippincott somehow has a direct grasp on your heartstrings, and she isn’t shy about tugging on them.
The book is organized into alternating perspectives–one chapter will be in Stella’s POV, and then it will switch to Will’s–which gives the reader a really good understanding of all facets of the storyline. Will and Stella both have very distinct personalities, and it bleeds into their narration. By the fifth chapter, you could probably tell who is narrating without any additional direction. You will grow to love each of Lippincott’s characters individually, as no two are the same.
So, if you’re looking for a romance book to get into the spirit of Valentine’s Day, I strongly recommend Five Feet Apart. It is a tragic romance for the tragic romantics, and I guarantee you will not be able to put it down.