This was such a sweet read and definitely the first of many I will be reading by this author. I found all the characters relatable in their own way. The romance aspect was written so well.

Ellie Haycock is Totally Normal didn't exactly go the way that I envisioned, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. I had never heard of VATERS prior to reading this book, so I kind of went into this one blind. I expected it to be on the emotional level of A Walk to Remember. While there are some frustrating and touching parts, it did not evoke the same emotion (though I don't believe it was meant to based on the target audience). I think this will be a well loved read by teens. Ellie was a very likable and dimensional character. There were times where she drove me nuts, but I also was rooting for her the entire story. I adored the chapters where Ryan came into the picture.

I felt for Ellie and her desire to have her life outside of the hospital be as normal as possible. Though I struggled with that because it seemed like such a hard thing to do, especially with her mother's blog. It's kind of hard to believe that she was able to keep it a secret at all. But that's just me overthinking a plot line, haha.

One thing that did make me uncomfortable (but also brought up some philosophical questions as a mom myself) was her mother's blog. I understand it was her way of processing all that Ellie went through, but something about it just felt weird. I just don't know if it was her story to tell. But again, it could just be me overthinking.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

This is the story of Ellie, a teenager with several disabilities caused by her unique condition - VACTERL. She has grown up as the main character on her mom’s medical mommy blog with every detail of her condition, surgeries and struggles shared openly with the world with little to no input from her. This is difficult for Ellie, because she tries to keep her medical situation hidden from her “normal” friends at school and only shares it with her “hospital friends.” However, the two worlds collide and her hospital friends work to convince her that her “normal” friends will love her for exactly who she is.

I felt like this was a nice coming of age novel with the unique detail of the main character being disabled. I enjoyed watching Ellie begin to desire and achieve control and autonomy over her own story and the ability to advocate for herself, all while discovering that she is lovable for exactly who she is. I applaud the author for writing this novel & adding diversity to the genre.

Overall, it was an okay read with a sweet story and somewhat unstable writing. It took me a while to get through it, but I’d recommend it to anyone looking for a sweet coming of age novel.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Gretchen Schreiber for this digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley for an eARC of this book.

Ellie is a junior in high school. She is on the debate team with her best friend, Brooke, and her boyfriend, Jack. During a competition a cough settles in her lungs and keeps her out of school for months. Ellie has VACTERLs (and there are many different types), and this causes her to have several surgeries and illnesses. It also can cause her more problems than someone without her health issues. Ellie and her Mom go to Coffman, where many specialists are located and ones that have been helping care for Ellie since she was born. Ellie has her life-life friends like Brooke and Jack, who don't really know much about her health issues as she doesn't want to burden them with that information and have them treat her differently. She also has hospital friends. Those that she makes in the hospital and at the Family Care Home where families stay during the lengthy hospital stays, but those friendships, while they go deep quickly, usually don't last once the people leave that environment. Another part of her life that she tries to keep separate is the blog her Mom writes for other people with VACTERLs. While the blog brings in support that helps other families in similar situations, Ellie is tired of all of this personal stuff about her being posted online, and when people from her life-life find it, it never ends well. Caitlin is a hospital friend that Ellie has had for years, and she is always there for Ellie. This time, however, Ellie makes new friends with Luis, Veronica, and Ryan.

Ellie goes through several struggles during this stay at the Family Care Home. The doctors aren't exactly sure what is causing her coughing. She has always tried to keep her life-life and hospital friends separate, but that is hard when her boyfriend shows up to surprise her. She is tired of her Mom posting everything about her life on the blog. She is tired of others not understanding what she is going through and those who treat her differently.

I enjoyed this book. I think it is an eye-opening experience for someone who doesn't deal with health issues like the characters in the book do. Also, it is probably helpful for those who do have health issues to see a character who they can relate to and know that they aren't alone.

Ellie Haycock is Totally Normal follows a teenage girl named Ellie who has a chronic illness that she is hiding from all of her friends, kind of like Hannah Montana minus the fame and all of the other perks. Even when she is hospitalized, she still keeps it a secret from her friends. I really enjoyed this book.

What a unique perspective!

As a mom who blogged our journey to adopt our children, it really made me think about what side of the story I was telling. As they have gotten older, we as a family have been less into "sharing on line" but this story really puts that into a unique perspective.

I took more away from the book about Ellie and her mother's relationship than anything else, but I think that's because the perspective I was reading from. I would put this on a YA list for sure though.

I really liked the premise and diversity rep in this book and everything I learned about VACTERLs and the experience of having so many serious medical issues as a child in general. I thought Ellie was a realistic teenager and the dynamic between her and her mom was well-done and had a good arch. I also enjoyed the little friend squad Ellie developed at the hospital. Some of the dialogue was a bit hard for me to follow, like it didn't quite live up to the witty repartee I was hoping for it to be, but overall this was a good, important story that I'm so glad is out there in the world.

Some of the themes and lessons from this book remind me and mirror how I felt about 'The Fault in Our Stars" by John Green that was also made into a movie with Shailene Woodley. That book dealth with the trauma and sadness of leukemia. The book dealt with Vater syndrome, which I thought was made up at first, until I looked it up...

Learnig that the author suffers from Vater syndrome, I felt a lot of empathy from her and Ellie is an extention of her. Even though this was young adult, the severity of the disease and all the emotions of Ellie;s life-long struggle hits you in the gut and in your heart. Ellie has dealt with so much!

I liked this more than I thought I would. Recommended.

Thanks to Gretchen Schreibner, Netgalley and St Martin's Press WEdnesday Books fof an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Available: 3/5/2024

what a great book and i loved reading this author. . loved the romance and how the couple came to be. Loved that they worked through their issues and found love. Loved this mystery

Ellie has had surgeries since forever and while she can't hide her appearance, she can still hide from her friends how bad things still are and all her life during the yearly periods she must stay away for her treatment. Thus, she keeps her life-life friends in one box and her hospital-friends in another. That's until her boyfriend comes for a surprise visit at the family home and finds out she's having another surgery without having told him. Suddenly, she sees that letting those walls fall and people help might be the way to get him back.

There's a lot to talk about this book, but one thing that never sat well was how half of it seemed to be preaching at me. I wasn't a fan of the tone, and Ellie was already a hard one to like without it. However, from what i could find out about the author, it comes from someone with experience in what Ellie is going through, so there is a lot to learn from Ellie's story too, lots of food for discussion if you're doing a group read. However, it also means the book feels a little like an autobiography, in a way that Ellie's voice mixed with the author's, and I wasn't sure if someone like Ellie would really be saying some of those things. Like there were two Ellies, and while one had a lot to say, one was just insufferable.

And she needed to be for her character's arc. I get that. And yet, I didn't like it.

The writing isn't very stable, as you can imagine from above. It's still a pleasant read—as it can be considering the theme. It's not sick-girl literature! Our main character happens to have health issues, she happens to be treating them, but this isn't about her being sick, but about her wanting to lead a normal life despite all the adversities. Ultimately, it's a coming of age with a romance on the side.

I'd say this was lukewarm, but it's a nice story and it raises great points, so I don't regret one bit picking it up.


Honest review based on an ARC provided by Netgalley. Many thanks to the publisher for this opportunity.

Even though I am far past my young adult years, I very much enjoy reading young adult novels to share with my grandchildren. While reading Ellie Haycock Is Totally Normal, I could relate to the young characters as well as their mothers. I do know a bit about what it's like to be viewed differently by your peers due to medical conditions. The author did an excellent job of helping the reader walk in the shoes of a person trying to juggle two different worlds. It's hard enough surviving the tumultuous teen years without the added burden of a medical disability. Thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin's Publishing and the author for an advance copy to read and review.

5/5 ⭐️
The way this book made me feel things on such a visceral level. So many times I wanted to rage for Ellie. I wanted to punch the doctor in the throat every time he greeted and only talked to her mom, even though Ellie was 17 and it was her body they were discussing. The internal rage I felt when her mom went into blogger mode. But then to swoon whenever Ellie and Ryan were being cute and how great her friends were. This is all I want from books, to react so viscerally and feel every emotion they do. And this book did that.
The mom blogging everything is such a double edged sword cause it does do good for other parents, but this is Ellie’s body and Ellie’s life she was dwindling down and contextualizing to fit into her narrative. It’s such an interesting aspect of the story, especially with the rise of people talking about family vlogs.
But the reason I enjoyed this book is the same reason why I enjoyed I Fell In Love With Hope by Lancili, this is the authors’ experiences and they’re sharing the unfiltered version. I felt like we were getting a glimpse of the varying experiences and emotions and outlooks for those chronically sick or disabled. Of what it is like to live their lives, even if for a 300 or so pages.
This was such an amazing book that in my opinion, wonderfully balanced punching us in the gut and the cuteness and capturing this unique experience with the universal experience teenage of craving autonomy and normalcy. Highly recommend this book.
Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for providing an advance reader copy of this book for my honest review.

Ellie Haycock is Totally Normal is exactly as advertised: a big-hearted novel that's a cross between Five Feet Apart and The Breakfast Club. Gretchen Schreiber's note at the beginning was touching and definitely added to the reading experience. I also love the bright and cheerful cover! Thanks for sharing this advanced ebook for me to read and review!

Summary: Ellie Haycock has her life at home and her life at the hospital and she strives to keep them separated; however, her mom keeps posting about Ellie's hospital stays on her blog and it gets harder and harder for Ellie to keep her two "lives" apart. She typically can't stand the long hospital stays, but the most recent visit is different as she finds a group of friends who are also staying there. Her life has never been ordinary, but maybe these new friends could make it extraordinary.

This young adult debut novel was an enjoyable read, but I did have a hard time connecting with the characters since I've never shared their experiences. I know they're in high school and going through experiences I will never understand, but sometimes they were dramatic and I was annoyed with their attitudes. I think a YA audience will love this book, but as an adult, I struggled to relate. Knowing this story is close to Gretchen Schreiber's heart kept me pushing through and I think she's so brave for sharing her story. The right audience will adore this book!

I really enjoyed this book. It is a YA novel written based on the author's life with a rare illness/disability. It is an inside look at what this can look and feel like as you're dealing with regular teenage emotions on top of medical diagnoses, surgeries, treatments and just wanting to be "normal" with your friends and relationships.

This was such an honest account of wanting to compartmentalize your life and only share what is "normal" or positive which is something I think a lot of people can relate to in different ways. The book is about relationships and letting people in, letting people be there for all of you and a part of your whole life and not just bits and pieces.

I loved the story and the characters and while Ellie was at times immature and frustrating in her journey, whenever I started to think that way I reminded myself that this character was a teenager and imagine how frustrating it would be to be her at times.

This is a good story for anyone who ever has felt like they just want to be fixed, to be normal, to belong in any capacity. I'd recommend it to anyone.

While I try to avoid doing this at all costs, I unfortunately had to DNF this book. I was struggling to get into this book, which was surprising for me given the medical subject matter and its relation to my job as an APRN. I was having a hard time connecting to the voice of our main character, which could be due to this being a young adult novel, though I have connected to and enjoyed young adult novels in the past. I found the peer relationships within this story to be difficult to interpret/relate to, which was a challenge. After getting to the 40% mark and feeling like I had to force myself to continue reading, I made the decision to DNF this book. I can see this book being an enjoyable read for someone wanting a young adult story with depth and more intense subject matter.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books for the copy of EllieEllie Haycock is Totally Fine by Gretchen Schreiber. I love YA books but it has been a while since I read one that captured the teen experience so well. It’s hard enough to be a teen, but imagine straddling two worlds, school and the hospital, as well as dealing with your parents’ divorce. You will fall in love with Ellie as she tries to navigate life and deal with two sets of friends. This would be a great gift for the teen in your life!

I enjoyed this YA story! It dealt with a girl named Ellie who was constantly in and out of the hospital. She always liked to keep her life separated...her at school with her friends and her at the hospital. But on her latest hospital stay, she ends up getting close to a group of friends and most especially to a new boy named Ryan.

It was a great coming of age story and also dealt with learning to let people in and learning to trust. It would be very relatable for people who suffer from chronic illness or have others in charge of their care, as that was a large theme in the book. Ellie could be quite stubborn, but she also had a certain amount of charm and I liked how she grew throughout the story.

I also really liked the Author's Note that was included, since this story is largely personal for the author herself. Overall, a great read!

This book featured a fantastic crew of characters and opened my eyes to a teenage hospital setting. It’s a story full of heart, and I hope many readers are able to see themselves in the pages. I enjoyed the dynamic cast of characters and watching everyone fight to maintain important friendships.

I was attracted to Ellie Haycock is Totally Normal because of the cover and the premise of living two separate lives. Result, a new favorite read of 2024 that felt very personal in some aspects, with the realities of being disabled, both good and bad, with a coming of age tale with friendship and romance all into one.

For her whole life, Eleanor Haycock has been splitting between her “normal” life and her hospital life, and it’s worse when her whole life and medical history with VACTERLs has been blogged by her mother, while having good intentions, has crossed some lines as of late, especially when she just wants to fit in. Most of the story takes place during another one of Ellie’s hospital stays, this time for lung issues. Though it’s not long before her two lives collide.

Especially to those that are disabled, this book is very relatable, mostly to Ellie’s challenges of trying to be as “normal” as possible, but knowing that she’ll stick out in the crowd, and the frustration that your life isn’t truly your own in more than one aspect. The coming of age aspects deal with trying to grow your own advocacy and autonomy, when many times, disabled people are denied this. I especially loved when Ellie aired out her frustrations about constant hospital stays and being treated like a project by the rest of the world. Other aspects of Ellie’s character that I liked was that she built up this stubbornness through years of hospital trips and she’s not immune to learning some valuable life lessons herself about life balance.

While there is a romance arc and rivals to lovers, there’s a just about equal focus on Ellie’s friends, both in and out of the hospital, and they were done well. Each of them had their own mini arc and I enjoyed learning about each of them and they weren’t just there for inspiration for the “normal” audience. I also like how Ellie’s parents are humanized as instead of these evil parents that don’t care for her. They are doing what they feel is best, but of course, they have to learn things too and mend the parent-child relationship, which can be so complex in these situations, so I appreciate that.

The prose was easy to follow along. There is talk of medical terminology and procedures, but it’s nothing graphic.

If you’re up for the less pretty parts of living with disabilities, this is a must read for anyone.

I really wish I loved Ellie Haycock Is Totally Normal. Exploring the rare chronic illness VACTERLs, Ellie wrestles with keeping her "sick" life separate from her "normal" life and unfortunately her character was insufferable. Of course, as a teen who has been sick her entire life, she's kind of justified in her feelings, but she treats everyone around her like shit.