📚Three Things About Emmy Crawford
🖌️Author: Allison L. Bitz
🖋️Publication: @harper360ya
📝P.g.: 352
🗂️Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Romance

5/⭐️

📌Summary:
There are three things high school senior Emmy Crawford will accomplish, no matter what:

⭐️Taking Nationals in debate this season.

⭐️Shielding her sister, Issy, from anything that could hurt her, especially her anxiety.

⭐️Representing her family well, since her mom may be the next president.

And nothing can get in Emmy’s way. Not Crohn’s disease, even if her gut has been acting up. Not the paparazzi, who snap any photos they can get of the daughters of a presidential candidate.

And definitely not her feelings for Gabe Castillo, the only debater in DC who stands a chance at beating her—and who she used to be on secret kissing terms with, before he ghosted her.

When Gabe unexpectedly returns to the debate scene and Issy starts crushing on him, Emmy works harder than ever to keep her eyes on winning and off her aching heart and body, because the alternative means losing the three things that matter most.

📌Review:
It’s so refreshing to read books that explore mental health, and highlight how impartant therapy is. Many people reading the book can identify with Emmy, the pressure, the anxiety, the need to be perfect.

This has been an emotional read and i am greatful i got the chance to know Emmy’s story.

📌Thoughts:
This book left me with the need to read more from the author.

I would like to thank @harper360ya for the free copy.

While the disability rep is good, and the book is sweet, it is way too full of TherapySpeakTM. The characters don't talk like teenagers do.

I think this is a fantastic book for younger readers. Reading this as an adult, I do feel I am older than the target audience, but that didn't mean I couldn't appreciate what a brilliant book this is. It's also, in fact, the first time I've read a book where the main character has Crohn's, so I absolutely love that representation for people!

Whilst I didn't find myself particularly attached to the characters or invested in any of the relationships, I think this is a really good book that broaches themes such as mental health, living with a lifelong condition, family and friendships and a lot more. It was heartwarming to read and I think this can be a brilliant way to make younger readers more familiar with these issues they'll face growing up, and normalise these issues.

This book got a lot of things right. The discussions about mental and Crohn's disease were refreshing and honest, and the characters felt like actual, real teenagers, something not all YA authors pull off. Emmy is the daughter of senator who is hoping to run for president and has huge eldest daughter energy. This makes her both very relatable and very frustrating. She tries her little sister with anxiety as very fragile and constantly babies her, and makes choices for herself, her sister, her best friend and her love interest without ever consulting them. This, of course, leads to some great character growth, but also makes for a tough read. What I did love was Emmy's self-care journey, and all the ways she slowly learned to let go, just a little. She has a wonderful group of people around her, which is sweet. I didn't love her and the love interest together, but it worked out okay in the end. Also, the messages about universal healthcare? Obsessed. Ultimately, this book tries to say a lot and doesn't always nail it, but gets close, and I respect that. The messages in this are ones teens need to hear.

There was a lot of good in this book: the representation, realistic portrayal of anxiety and meeting expectations, fun supporting characters. On the other hand, the book dragged for me, I didn’t fully see the connection between characters, I didn’t buy into the romance, and pacing was definitely an issue.

3⭐️

Funny, romantic, heart-breaking at times and so true to life. It really shows the pressures not just on the children of a senator to live up to expectations, but the struggles of teenagers the world over. In some ways it really reminded me of the princess diaries, or similar books in that vein.

However, this book is much more than a teenage romcom. It was clear from the start that some of the book themes- Crohn’s disease, mental health, and the US national health care system - are really close to the author’s heart. Her passion for and expertise on these topics really shine through and make the characters so convincing and human, educating the reader in the process! I would love to revisit these characters in a sequel and see how they continue to grow!

Short and Sweet Review

Emmy Crawford is a senior in high school and she has three goals: Winning the debate nationals, protecting her sister Issy, and being a good representation of her family because her mom is running for president.

Our main character is Emmy. Emmy likes to make lists of threes to keep everything organized and she’s always determined to meet her goals. Emmy has a personality in which she likes to look out for other people but won’t let them know if anything is wrong with her so more often than not she’s trying to hide her emotions and have an I’m fine attitude. Emmy also has Crohn’s disease and it was nice to see this being brought up I just wish Emmy would have taken it more seriously, she didn’t take her medicine and missed appointments, because she was more worried about going to Nationals. There’s two main plots in this book one is Emmy’s mom running for president and the other is going to nationals and having her rival Gabe as a love interest. Let’s start with her mom running for president. We get to see how stressful this is for the whole family because there’s paparazzi trying to find them in precarious situations and its hard for the girls to be normal teens when they’re constantly watched. The whole nationals thing was a big goal for Emmy and that’s a big focus for her during the book. Gabe is on a nationals team for another school and he and Emmy actually had a history until he ghosted her. Emmy thinks her sister Issy likes Gabe so she tries to avoid him and fails and then she tries to hangout with another guy to make Gabe jealous. That whole love triangle was unnecessary and it all could have been avoided with some communication. In the end Emmy had a big wake up call which I think she needed but I wish she could have done more reflection during the book and not when things hit the fan.

Overall, this was an okay book, but Emmy wasn’t my favorite character. I wish she had more growth and truly listened to the feedback people were giving her instead of brushing the advice off. I wouldn’t read this book again but maybe someone who can connect to Emmy’s character and who’s interested in politics and debating will like it.

As the oldest child of a senator and possibly the future president, Emmy has a lot on her plate. Not only is she working hard at debate, helping her sister with anxiety, a disease she doesn't want to bother with, but she also has to face the boy she liked that ghosted her once again.

This was so much more than I expected or asked for. All the notes were hit, and I could not find a anything to complain about this book. The plot is very well thought out, and I just appreciate the amazing flow of the story and the writing is just superb.

Is it perfect? No. Is it my new favorite? No. However, I know for sure that this book is something that I will not forget the plot about. You know how you give five stars to such an amazing book, then years later, you can't even remember what the book was about? I'm sure already that this story will stay with me.

I truly love the characters and Emmy. They were relatable and realistic. It handles topics that truly affect at least one person you know. This book is one of those social justice books that don't over do it. Like it was safe, with whatever stance I take.

Plus, I haven't even talked about the romance! It was cute, messy, but relatable. It has that feel of being the type of love I wish I could have.

This was a wonderful book, and it made me curious what the author's debut novel was.

Three Things About Emmy Crawford is a book about Emmy Crawford who is a master debater, the daughter of a politician and someone who battles a chronic illness. With all of these on her plate, life is tough for Emmy to juggle - especially when an old flame enters the picture. Even more difficult is the fact that nobody knows about said old flame...

This book was easy to devour and was written incredibly well. I found the story and the characters to be compelling (even if they do silly things almost all of the time). The heart of the story is about advocating for yourself and not getting so stuck in other people's stories that you forget your own. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a quick read with elements of humour and heart.

This book dealt with a lot of difficult issues such as mental health, physical health and personal privacy. The author did a great job weaving these issues into the story in a subtle way where they were incredibly important and yet not the main theme. However, the plot used these issues to move the story along - because the characters didn't share them with each other. If the characters had been honest and open from the beginning, there would be no book.
But that makes it a struggle as a reader to not just think, this would all be solved if they just were upfront with each other. I wish there were more than that driving the story.

Three Things About Emmy Crawford is a heartwarming coming of age story about family, friendships, honesty, forgiveness, and overcoming personal challenges. This book has great mental health, therapy, and chronic illness representation. Emmy was the first protagonist I’ve read who’s had Chron’s disease and I appreciated the insight into the daily battle with the disease. I also appreciated the fact that these young people valued therapy and mental health.

The book does go a little hard for me on universal healthcare for all, however. From what I gather the author wrote a lot from her own experience and I can appreciate that and the fact that the book is saying **something** however, sometimes I felt like it became the focus rather than the plot. Additionally, I felt like Emmy and Issy’s relationship didn’t read right. I’m not exactly sure why, I just didn’t super love their relationship. There was a lot a sort of love-square situation that was unexpected and I didn’t dig at all.

I liked this book just fine. And I think a lot of people will like it. There was just something missing! I think it will be a big YA hit for those who are interested in the highschool debate scene, political family life, and looking for chronic illness representation.

It was strange and sweet and entertaining and informative and fun. Great quick read that makes you feel all the feels.

Emmy Crawford seems to be at the top of her game as she navigates 1. Her shifting family dynamics as her mom’s political career increasingly puts them in the spotlight; 2. Her successful debate career; and 3. Her grudge against the boy who ghosted her two years ago. But the return of the boy, her secret battle with Crohn’s disease, and the intensifying impact her mom’s career has on her sister’s mental health and her privacy threaten to ruin everything she has pushed so hard to gain. Part love story, part coming-of-age novel, this book is about facing your demons and being vulnerable.

Thank you Netgalley and HarperCollins for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

"Three Things About Emmy Crawford" by Allison L. Bitz is a heartwarming coming-of-age novel that has a sweet academic rivals/lovers romance while also focusing on different themes revolving around both mental health and physical health with different conditions/disabilities. Through the story of Emmy Crawford, Bitz deftly explores the complexities of family and relationships.

Emmy Crawford is a high school senior with ambitious goals despite facing numerous obstacles, including Crohn's disease and the constant media attention that comes with being the daughter of a prominent senator. Bitz paints a vivid and compelling portrait of Emmy, showcasing her strength and determination while also showcasing Emmy’s flaws as she learns to grow as both a person as well as someone living with Crohn’s disease. She learns that she can’t just ignore her problems, both in her actual life as well as her physical problems, in order to achieve her dreams. I really enjoyed Emmy’s growth in the book, especially when she learns how to take care of herself and that she doesn’t need to have the weight of both her world and her sister’s world on her shoulders.

Central to the story is Emmy's deep bond with her sister, Issy, whom she fiercely protects from stressors of her anxiety. Bitz skillfully navigates the complexities of sibling relationships; the focus of Emmy’s relationship with her sister was the highlight of the book for me, especially when as the reader see the depth in which Emmy tries to protect her sister while her sister is also trying to protect Emmy. This does lead to some misunderstands/miscommunications throughout the book, which are all thankfully cleared up in the end.

Bitz is able to bring Emmy's world to life, especially when showing the electrifying world of debate competitions; there are snippets of debate speeches within the book, which I thoroughly enjoyed as you were able to experience the characters’ perspectives, though I wish we were able to read others’ speeches, such as Gabe’s in the book. While I enjoyed the romance in the book, I think the focus family dynamics was the most important part. I didn’t like some of the miscommunications that were established and how there was basically a “love square” at some point. I was definitely more invested in the characters more than the actual romance.

Overall, "Three Things About Emmy Crawford" is an emotional read filled with self-growth and togetherness. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and I definitely can’t wait to read more from Bitz.

I’m thinking I should have taken Lori’s recommendation of this author’s first book when she made it!!! In fact, I just went and found that book and checked it out! Because THIS book???? I cried throughout. I laughed my big white butt off. I learned about Crohn’s disease and anxiety and a bit about a senator’s life and, well, I learned about me. I have more in common with Emmy Crawford than I would have guessed, but I guess that also means I have similarities to the author. And that makes sense, since I enjoyed this book so much. It was real and strange and sweet and so so lovely in so many ways. 💜💜📚

Allison L. Bitz's "Three Things About Emmy Crawford" offers a compelling narrative of resilience and pursuit, capturing the essence of youthful determination amidst life's challenges. Set within the high-pressure world of debate competitions, the story of Emmy Crawford unfolds with gripping intensity, weaving together themes of family, friendship, and personal growth.

At its core, the novel revolves around Emmy Crawford, a high school senior whose unwavering ambition propels her forward despite the obstacles she faces. Battling Crohn's disease and the constant media scrutiny as the daughter of a prominent senator, Emmy remains resolute in her pursuit of three fundamental goals. Allison skillfully portrays Emmy's strength and resolve, creating a protagonist whose determination serves as an inspiring example to readers.

Central to the story is Emmy's deep bond with her sister, Issy, whom she fiercely protects from life's hardships. Allison delicately explores the intricacies of sibling relationships, infusing the narrative with moments of heartfelt connection and genuine emotion.

Moreover, the novel delves into Emmy's romantic entanglements, particularly her complex feelings for Gabe Castillo, a fellow debater with whom she shares a complicated history. As Emmy navigates the turbulent waters of young love while striving for victory, readers are drawn into a compelling exploration of self-discovery and emotional growth.

Allison's prose is both evocative and eloquent, painting vivid images that immerse readers in Emmy's world. From the electrifying debates to the tender moments of intimacy and vulnerability, "Three Things About Emmy Crawford" resonates with authenticity and emotional depth.

"Three Things About Emmy Crawford" is a captivating tale of resilience, determination, and love triumphing over adversity. Allison L. Bitz has crafted a compelling narrative that will linger in the hearts of readers, offering a poignant reminder of the power of perseverance and the importance of forging meaningful connections. This is a novel that will resonate with fans of contemporary YA fiction, leaving a lasting impression long after the final page is turned.