Earlier this year, Eve Ainsworth published her debut novel, Seven Days. Seven Days is a young adult novel that spans one week in the lives of two teenage girls. One of the girls is Jess Pearson, who suffers from familial problems since her father abandoned her and her mother is overworked and obesity which is made even harder by Kez, the second of the aforementioned teenage girls. To Jess and practically everyone else, Kez seems like the ideal girl. She’s very decent looking and has a demanding and powerful presence. However, what Jess learns is that her nemesis and bully suffers from her own problems of insecurity, familial conflict, and a constant power struggle. This novel, by Ainsworth, allows both girls to tell their story in a touching and insightful dual narrative.
Ultimately what makes this novel special is not the premise, but it is the fact that both girls have a voice. Both Kez and Jess have the opportunity to tell their story which is unique because in fiction we tend to idealize those who we believe are the obvious victims and hail them as miserable heroes. This would have been the case if the book had only been narrated by Jess who would have related that, due to her obesity and lack of confidence, Kez took pleasure out of taunting her.
However, since we have Kez as an alternate narrator, the alleged antagonist in Jess’s eyes has the chance to stand up for herself and represent her own values without being drawn out by Jess. Thus a major idea of this story, as Ainsworth states in the back of Seven Days, is that there are two sides to every story. That’s why I believe this book is a relevant read given the current idealization of alleged victims in the fiction of today. Once again, however, this is a young adult novel.
If you have read the book, plan to, or have book recommendations of your own please mention them in the comments below.
