Book Review: Finding Audrey by Sophie Kinsella

Hardcover: 304 pages

Publisher: Delacorte Press (June 9, 2015)

ISBN-10: 0553536516

ISBN-13: 978-0553536515

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Shopaholic series comes a terrific blend of comedy, romance, and psychological recovery in a contemporary YA novel sure to inspire and entertain.

An anxiety disorder disrupts fourteen-year-old Audrey’s daily life. She has been making slow but steady progress with Dr. Sarah, but when Audrey meets Linus, her brother’s gaming teammate, she is energized. She

connects with him. Audrey can talk through her fears with Linus in a way she’s never been able to do with anyone before. As their friendship deepens and her recovery gains momentum, a sweet romantic connection develops, one that helps not just Audrey but also her entire family.

My Thoughts

I read this book back in February as part of one of my Goodreads book clubs. I was excited about reading it since I had never read anything from Sophie Kinsella, but have heard good things about her Shopaholic series. My first thought when I saw the cover was that it was going to have something to do with Audrey Hepburn…Is this going to be the story of a young girl finding her inner Audrey Hepburn? Nope, not even close. Did I just come up with a brilliant book idea? I’m sure it has already been done…right?

Anyways! Back to Finding Audrey! This is going to be a short review since it was a rather short book. I finished the book in one evening. If you are looking for a quick read, you found it.

I think Kinsella did a wonderful job expressing what it is like to suffer from anxiety and depression. Anxiety and depression are such taboo topics these days, so it is refreshing to see an author shed some light on these tough issues. She was able to create a story centered around a “heavy topic” but still managed to keep the book light hearted.

I really enjoyed Kinsella’s humor in this book. There were a few moments where I found myself laughing out loud. My fellow Moms will appreciate this one…

“Half an hour later he’s all fluffy and clean and smiling and eating sandwiches. Baths are like Valium for four-year-olds.”

–Finding Audrey

As a parent, this book was very relatable. I am not afraid to admit that my kids drive me bat shit crazy at times. I also must admit I have thrown my son’s Xbox into the trash before… I did end up fishing it out after he had gone to bed, but I let him sweat out for a week before I gave it back 🙂

In the book, Audrey was assigned a video project from her therapist, so many of the chapters are written like a screenplay. I thought this was creative and out of the box. Kudos to Kinsella for creativity!

Overall, I felt like the book was cute, but I wanted a little more. There was a big part of the book that was left unresolved. This was done intentionally by the author, so the reader could come up with their own interpretation. Normally I like this tactic, but for this book I felt that adding this key component would have made the book more compelling. It also could have been used as an effective tool for teaching a very important lesson.

I would recommend this book for the younger ages in the YA age range. I would say it would probably appeal to those who are 13-16ish.

My Rating: 3.5/5 Stars

Have you had the chance to read Finding Audrey? What did you think?

About the Author

Madeleine Wickham (born 12 December 1969) is a bestselling British author under her pseudonym, Sophie Kinsella. Educated at New College, Oxford, she worked as a financial journalist before turning to fiction. She is best known for writing a popular series of chick-lit novels. The Shopaholic novels series focuses on the misadventures of Becky Bloomwood, a financial journalist who cannot manage her own finances. The books follows her life from when her credit card debt first become overwhelming (“The Secret Dreamworld of a Shopaholic”) to the latest book on being married and having a child (“Shopaholic & Baby”). Throughout the entire series, her obsession with shopping and the complications that imparts on her life are central themes.

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