The Theory of Everything by J.J. Johnson Review

"Just because everyone else thinks you should be over it doesn't mean you are.

Last year, Sarah's best friend Jamie died in a freak accident. Back then, everyone was sad; now they're just ready for Sarah to get over it and move on.

But Sarah's not ready to move on. She can't stop reliving what happened, struggling with guilt, questioning the meaning of life, and missing her best friend. Her grades are plummeting, her relationships are falling apart, and her normal voice seems to have been replaced with a snark box. Life just seems random: no pattern, no meaning, no rules - and no reason to bother.

In a last-ditch effort to pull it together, Sarah befriends Jamie's twin brother Emmett, who may be the only other person who understands what she's lost. And when she gets a job working for the local eccentric who owns a Christmas tree farm, she finally begins to understand the threads that connect us all, the benefit of giving people a chance, and the power of love."

YABC.

When I think of this title, I think of Eddie Redmayne. But let's face it. This book has nothing to do with Stephen Hawking or Eddie Redmayne. So please forgive me of this brief and somewhat strange off-topic moment of mine. 

The Theory of Everything tells a story of recovery from a very close and ugly death, and Sarah has a lot of therapy to shoulder through. (Well, therapy... healing... grieving... The list of words I could use goes on, but my point is that she's suffering and she's not having an easy time.) Quite unfortunately, she saw her best friend died, and like anyone who witnessed someone young dying, there is a lot of grief and shock and horror. It's truly terrible, but the most amazing part is watching Sarah overcome that grief. 

The book itself has unique parts and graphs. (You'll understand if you have a copy of this book.) Every chapter starts off with a chart of some sorts. It provides insight into Sarah's mind, and she employs different types of graphs. One example is a pie chart. (I believe there's even a Venn Diagram, but that's a bit off-topic once again.) 

There is no villain, nobody who is deemed "evil," and not a single person who is against Sarah. Well, Sarah may think that the world is against her (or that the world really doesn't care), but let's face it. It's not an external force that is coming at Sarah. It's internal, and grief is digging Sarah into a hole and dragging her to a place Sarah definitely doesn't want to go. 

And that leads up to Sarah herself. Her relationships matter (and I have to admit that I wish her parents and other characters receive a little more development), and her strong narrative arc drives the story to its conclusion. 

The ending itself is too short, in my honest opinion. It needs a more substance, and I wish that the author gives off more of an emotional impact. But what's there already passes. 

Overall, The Theory of Everything has nothing to do with Eddie Redmayne at all. (I'm sorry, I had to do that one more time.) But The Theory of Everything is a great, unique story that will help pass the time. It's a bit sad, yes, but it's also uplifting and it doesn't go into the darker zones of grief. 

Rating: Three out of Five