I'm a bit conflicted on how I feel about this one, which is sad because I think it has all the elements of a good younger YA book, but I just can't get past some of the ideals presented with lack of dichotomy and willingness to look beyond surface-level situations.

**Review of "The Truth About Everything" by Bridget Farr**

Hold onto your tin foil hats, folks, because Bridget Farr’s "The Truth About Everything" is a wild ride through conspiracy theories and coming-of-age revelations that will leave you questioning everything you thought you knew. Lark, a fifteen-year-old raised in rural Montana on a diet of fish-gutting and truck-wiring, finds herself thrust into the bewildering world of high school after a lifetime of homeschooling in preparation for the apocalypse.

Farr weaves a captivating tale of Lark’s journey from the confines of her parents’ doomsday prepping to the fluorescent-lit halls of public education. As Lark navigates the unfamiliar terrain of teenage life, from decoding the mysteries of the internet to grappling with her own biology (hello, first period!), she discovers that her parents’ beliefs might not hold water outside their isolated farm.

Filled with humor and heart, "The Truth About Everything" blends Lark’s earnest quest for knowledge with a sharp commentary on the dangers of misinformation and the power of discovering one’s own truth. Farr’s writing is both poignant and laugh-out-loud funny, making this novel a must-read for anyone who’s ever wondered what lies beyond their own backyard bunker.

So, buckle up and join Lark as she digs deep, separates fact from fiction, and learns that sometimes the scariest truths are the ones you uncover about yourself.

3.5 Stars*
"The Truth About Everything" follows Lark, a 15-year-old girl who lives out on remote land in Montana with her parents. Her parents believe the US government is bound to collapse, and they must do everything they can to live off the grid and prepare for the day it all goes awry. Lark has never questioned her parents, or her upbringing, because she has never known anything different. But Lark desperately wants to attend school like other people her age. So, Lark secretly attends a nearby high school, and she slowly learns that her parents' limited way of thinking might not all be true.
I really enjoyed the idea of this story: a young girl who desperately wants to learn and be educated, so she rebels against her parents to attend school. Knowledge is so powerful, and seeing Lark learn that and become a stronger person was amazing. I also really appreciated that when Lark learned that something her father taught her might not be true, she did not judge him or get upset, she just started questioning things. I think this is such a mature approach to learning your parents might be flawed in their reasoning.
I think this story was presented in a very respectful way. There are people who do not trust the government and who do not believe in the same things as everyone else, and that is okay. The author never seems to criticize those with a Doomsday prepping belief, but rather the author strives to paint a picture of scared people who are trying to do the best they can with the knowledge they are presented. I also think this book is appropriately marketed for "young adult", and I think it is a great opportunity for teenagers to either feel seen or learn about another human experience.
This book was highly engaging and once I started it, I could not put it down. I was so curious to see what would happen to Lark and her parents.
Lark's father was a bit much for me to take because him and I have such differing ideas, but I appreciated him as a character, and I appreciated seeing inside the mind of someone who believes different things than me. He makes what I think is a radical decision at the end of the book that really upset me. Although I think this aligns with his character and provided a more authentic reading experience, I was upset for Lark, and it really hindered my enjoyment of the resolution.
I definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a YA book about characters who are skeptical of their government.

This was an interesting story with a super immersive and timely premise! Homeschooled Lark has been shielded from much of the world, being taught pretty much only what her parents want her to know. Things start breaking down quickly as Lark grows and changes and starts questioning things, and that bubble provided by her parents begins to lose some air. She soon realizes that not everything she’s been taught is truth, and now she’s grappling with so much, including identity, personal discovery, and most importantly, freedom.

This book mirrored a lot of what we know of preppers, doomsday people, and anti-government folks who choose to believe certain things that aren’t always truth or rooted in fact. Lark’s parents were mild compared to some of the people you see on the news, but the gist is the same. I liked that the story was relative to today’s political climate, and I loved seeing Lark kind of rebel and yearn to just break free.

All told, an enjoyable read and certainly one I’ll recommend.

This book is around the theme of homeschooling and in this case the main character, Lark, who is taught at home by her parents. Throughout the reading, we see the difficulties, thoughts and doubts felt by Lark and it is sad. It's sad to see someone who wants to know so much and won't let her, someone who has pure curiosity and they try to mould her ideas.

All the characters reveal strong characteristics and there wasn't one I didn't like. They fit perfectly throughout the story, especially Lark, who is strong and intelligent, even after the homeschool failing. Her curiosity is what guides her through the days, bringing her out of her cocoon.

The plot is quite interesting as events unfold. I liked the ending and, in my opinion, it was the most suitable, even if everything didn't turn out well and perfect. The only reason I don't give it five stars is that the beginning didn't appeal to me as much. Fortunately, after a while, the story began to captivate until it became addictive.

A interesting premise and enjoyable YA book; I personally just didn’t connect with it, which is why it wasn’t as exciting for me to read.

There are plenty of books out there about teens learning to question their parents' views. Many of these books take the approach that adults are ignorant and teens need space to find the truth. I don't think most people will think that Lark's parents got things "right" but Farr's approach is a bit more careful than the standard "you're wrong". Lark doesn't wholesale reject what she's been taught. It's more about the opportunity to ask questions, to explore the world for herself and come to her own conclusions. Her parents, rather than backwards fools stuck in their ways, are portrayed as lost and desperate people looking for answers, doing all that they can to protect their only child. They've gone to extremes, certainly, but they are complex people with clear motivations. There are some elements of the plot that are confusing or never fully explained, but there is enough positives to this book to make it worth a read.

Lark has been “homeschooled” her entire life. “Lessons” included the gutting of a fish, completing household chores, and how to require a truck. All crucial skills to learn when preparing for the collapse of the US government, but when Lark sneaks out to attend high school for the first time, she learns that everything she thought she knew about the world might not be true at all.
Self-discovery. Friendship. High School. And of course, conspiracy theorist parents obsessed with planning for survival after the collapse of the US government. As someone who rarely steps out from behind YA fantasy and sci-fi, I am so glad I got to embark on Lark’s journey of self-discovery. This beautifully written, fast-paced YA contemporary had me eagerly turning pages from the second I received my copy to the last word.

This was a surprising gem of a book! Since I didn't hear much buzz about it, I was worried that it would be a flop. Interesting premise, but maybe that it wouldn't deliver on that.

How wrong I was! I actually enjoyed the story. It reminded me of Educated by Tara Westover at points, but very YA.

I will say, I am not a fan of the cover here and it will be a little bit hard to "sell" this one in the library. But the hook of the story should get the kids reading. However, that vagina-y fish is kind of weird and will get some comments when it is on the display!

As a person raised in the south surrounded by evangelicals and watching my childhood classmates homeschool their children so they can avoid being exposed to any ideas not personally approved by them, the story presented here tracked with my worst fears of what this is doing to those homeschooled children. They are trapped and the education is lacking because (and I firmly believe this), one person shouldn't entirely control what a child learns. Parents can certainly help a child filter the things they learn through family values, but child will have their own lens through which they view the world and this will be different from their parents'. That's just my two cents.

Anyways, I will be adding this book to my library and putting in the hands of my students!

I DNF'd this at 60%.

I did not know what this book was going to be about. The idea of a girl who is rejecting her parent's hyper religiosity sounded great.

However, as someone who rejects organized religion and is more spiritual than anything, I was so angry at this book.
Her parents are terrible people, this book took way too long to develop. I am sorry I wanted to like this but I can't.

I did like the author's writing style. It was very descriptive and immersive. I definitely want to check something else out by this author, if possible.
I just didn't like the premise which is a total me problem I acknowledge this.

This book reminded me so much of EDUCATED. There are even parallels to Westover's story of learning about the Holocaust in college with Lark revealing to her class what she "knows" about 9/11.

Like I've seen others say, it's a very quiet book. There are some moments of suspense, but the true focus is on Lark's growing realization that while her parents might have had good intentions, their belief in conspiracy theories and distrust of institutions is actively harming her.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loved the concept of this book - it was so different to anything I’d read before. I particularly liked the way the author dealt with the idea of misinformation and education. The protagonist faces many questions about whether to believe her family or what she is being taught in school. This is a really interesting dilemma to explore.

I started this book, but I had a very hard time getting into it. I DNFed this book. I will try it again at a later date. But I just couldn’t get into it.

"About this I am sure: I will not live my life by old answers to new questions. I won't ignore the things I know to be true simply because he's told me different. And I can't do this anymore."

15 year old Lark lives on a farm with her government hating, doomsday prepping parents. It's been her normal for her entire life. She's never questioned their way of living or the things her father has told her until she gets her first period and her first thought being "I lost a baby." When she was explaining her symptoms to her mom, she was finally but vaguely told what was actually happening. She didn't completely understand until her local friend Alex, a male, gave her more information later on.

"'I mean, I've picked up stuff for my mom before. At the grocery store. Or the Conoco. It doesn't weird me out. Here.

Out of his pockets, he pulls three squares-one yellow, one red, and one black.

'This isn't great chocolate, but it should do the trick.'

'What's it supposed to do?'

Alex shrugs, dropping the chocolate in my open hand.

'Not sure, exactly, but my mom always craves chocolate when it's that time of the month.'

It's monthly? Mom didn't mention that. Another something I should know.”

To Lark, eating anything with sugar is unheard of. According to her parents, it'll make her incredibly sick as it's the governments way of poisoning their bodies. But yet, her dad will eat snickers and her mom will drink soda.

When Lark's dad keeps giving her books to read, not knowing she actually can't read them, and Alex tells her stories about his school, she yearns for more knowledge. She immediately knows she wants to go to school.

When her dad leaves for his trucking job, she decides to enroll at the Christian school down the road, secretly. Right away Lark realizes life is a lot different than she's always been told and it's not as scary as her dad has made it seem.

Obviously it's strange for a 15 year old to be enrolling alone and it isn't long before her mom finds out. Lark uses the secret visits to her grandmas when dad is away as leverage leading her mom to say yes to school, at least until her dad comes home.

"It won't last. Not forever. Probably not even past the week until dad returns. Because she says yes, for now, but she's a petunia to Dad's frost. She'll hold up for awhile, but he'll get to her and she'll turn-drooping, limp, the truth seeping out of her withered veins."

Being in school and making friends lead to Lark finally realizing she has a right to make her own choices despite her controlling father and a mother who stays in bed all day withdrawn from life and Lark.

This finally leads Lark in her journey to self discovery.

I found this book to be so frustrating. Lark was an incredibly naive girl but she was hardly to blame. Her parents were beyond selfish. The girl got strep and they refused to get her checked out leaving the sickness to linger far beyond it's normal course.

Her mother lost many, many babies and they act as if they're still alive. I completely understand grief. But the moms grief over her lost babies has her severely depressed that she sleeps all the time and barely leaves her bed. But still, the father does nothing about it. It’s clear she needs help but they refuse to get it.

Lark makes it clear they her parents’ homeschooling methods aren’t enough especially since they have pretty much stopped doing it with her. But they do nothing to give her an education. And they get angry whenever Lark asks questions (or gives ver inaccurate answers) or when she asks for anything more than what’s provided.

My main issue was that nothing really happened in the entirety of this book. It was a long monologue of a severely complicated family and there was no real resolution.

This book got three stars from me as it just wasn't entertaining and could have been a much better story. This held a lot of promise but just didn't give in the way it could have.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Flux , for providing this digital ARC with me in exchange for my honest opinion. This review is based on uncorrected text which did not sway my feedback either which way. All thoughts are my own.

Please check out this review (will be published 10/28) and many others on my blog, sweetbooksomine.com

The Truth About Everything is a book that was difficult, emotionally, to read. The story follows a 15 year old girl named Lark who for her whole life lived under the belief that her parents were the be all end all of education. Raised by two conspiracy theorists who believe that the government is constantly trying to brain wash and control the masses, Lark’s understanding of what counts as truth is severely underdeveloped and uncritical. When she finally works up the courage to secretly enroll at a Christian private school near her house, Lark finally opens herself to new opportunities.

At its heart, I think The Truth About Everything is a book that asks the reader to think about two main questions: how do we distinguish between fact and fiction? and what counts as child abuse? It’s a story about a teen learning what it means to be free, and it’s a story about a teen struggling with the idea that her parents love for her could actually be the thing causing her the most harm. I think this book opens up a lot of lessons and new questions for people to think about. Particularly, what does it mean to question everything you’ve ever known or been taught and what does it mean to consider the idea that you may have a form of parental Stockholm Syndrome.

I do feel the need to point out that there are some things in the book that you might have to suspend your disbelief for. For one, the book puts a lot of emphasis on the fact that Lark doesn’t really know how to read and has a very limited vocabulary. This makes sense considering how her parents gave up on homeschooling her early on, but it doesn’t really make sense with the fact that the book is written in first person present. For me, I think I would have preferred to write the book in first person past as a way of showing her educational progress. I am aware, however, that YA authors are often pushed to write in first person present and that the tense of the writing might not be indicative of the characters personal timeline.

The other main thing that I had to read past was the fact that Lark seemed strangely willing to discount her parents teachings at basically any sign of push back from her friends/schooling. Based on how long Lark has spent believing her parents, I thought this paradigm shift happened unrealistically quick in her.

This was such an interesting YA Contemporary. It was a slower paced book but the content still captivated me. Lark grows up on a farm with only her mother, father, and dog gizmo to keep her company. She's been homeschooled her entire life and the only friend she has is a boy named Alex who she met through a friend of her father's.

When her father heads out on weeks on a long-haul trip for work Lark decides to take Alex's advice to explore the possibility of attending the nearby school. Lark soon realizes that keeping secrets from her parents may lead to unforeseen consequences and that what she thought she knew about the world may have all been a lie.

The setting, characters, and plotline were well developed. I thought the support Lark finds among the "outsiders" felt genuine and enjoyed watching Lark coming out of her shell and gaining her own independence throughout the book. I definitely recommend this and plan to read more of Bridget Farr's books in the future.

An incredibly powerful and timely story about the importance of education and the dangers of misinformation. Lark’s voice as a protagonist shines just as bright as the plot. And it was lovely to see her take flight. Every teenager needs to read this book!

From the book:
“Kids believe their parents all the time. All parents lie. Some parents tell nice lies like Santa Claus and others say everything’s fine when they’re getting a divorce and your parents tell you that the government puts fluoride in the water to numb the masses.”

The Truth About Everything is a quiet story about a girl struggling to learn about her world, think for herself, and gain the wisdom to separate fact from fiction. The simple life the Herbst family is living is very precarious. At any time, a minor mishap on their remote farm could have deadly repercussions, and with her parents’ beliefs, there are few workable backup plans.

Lark is a bright and engaging character, and it was fun seeing her take chances and enjoy her school experiences. Her constant fear of discovery by her parents was heartbreaking, and I was worried that, at any moment, her father would become violent. He just felt so angry and tightly wound all the time. Her father and mother are a sad and scary pair; their fears blinding them to the danger and harm they inflicted on their daughter. However, Lark’s friend, Alex, was a sweet guy, and I liked how he supported her in trying to expand her choices.

Lark’s sheltered and deprived life will undoubtedly catch the attention and imagination of young readers. No television, internet, hunger pains, going through her first menstrual cycle without prior preparation from her mother, and then not having the standard supplies to take care of herself at her disposal will be shocking to many. But even little things, something as mundane as having never tasted chocolate candy, will be an eye-opener. The mother and father freely eating and drinking food and beverage forbidden to their daughter was pretty low. The more that was revealed about her life, the more the story’s tension built. Lark needed help.

With a brave and curious heroine and its quiet, simple yet absorbing plot, I recommend THE TRUTH ABOUT EVERYTHING to young adult contemporary fiction readers who like a strong female protagonist in an unusual coming-of-age situation, living off the grid, or a rural Montana setting.

This book's strengths are in how unassuming it is. The MC is a sheltered teen who in some ways has learned things that many people won't in a lifetime. It is a quiet spin on a traditional coming of age, where a teenage girl is unprepared to deal with normal life for an abnormal reason. The main character is easy to root for because you understand she is not at all at fault for the things that she is dealing with and choices that would be frustrating to read with a traditional teen MC are not. The story creates gentle suspense in wondering what will happen as the stakes of the story get higher. Coming to terms with everything you know being a lie is difficult to say the least, but the author has managed to describe it in a way that is easier to digest. The supporting cast is small but superb and how they shape the main character is great.

My only drawback is that the family is painted as SOOOOOO extreme but none of their actions really followed that. Their main beliefs yes, but as the story plays out, none of their actions really are.

Lark is homeschooled and her parents tell her she is smart and a quick learner but they don't teach her now. She has difficulty reading. She is taught about how the government controls your life through various things.

The author has written a book that talks about parents who are anti-government and how their upbringing and beliefs are the only thing Lark knows until a moment which gets her to question what exactly is that she knows and his much is true. Alex is there to help out on this journey as the questions started with him telling about school and more things.

The writing is descriptive and I could feel what all Lark is going through trying to figure out everything. The author talks about heavy issues like child abuse, foster care, mental health and conspiracies in a brilliant way.

This questions what freedom is, how much is true, what lies are we fed and has lot to learn from. I would recommend this unique YA contemporary that has raw emotions throughout.