Common Sense Media Review
By Andrea Beach
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Compelling teen romance tackles suicide, finds hope.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 14+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
Parent and Kid Reviews
Based on 8 parent reviews
Based on 95 kid reviews
Kids say this is a captivating and deeply emotional young adult novel that addresses heavy themes like mental health, suicide, and grief through the relationship between two relatable teenage characters. Though it beautifully portrays their struggles and growth, readers often caution that it requires maturity to handle its intense subject matter, and many recommend it for older teens due to its emotional weight and delicate content.
- emotional depth
- relatable characters
- mature themes
- grief and loss
- impactful storytelling
Summarized with AI
What's the Story?
Violet and Finch meet six stories up, on the ledge of their school's bell tower. They couldn't be more different: She's popular, with a bright future at a top college; he's an outsider labeled a "freak." When they partner up on a geography project to explore their home state of Indiana, they begin to learn what drove each of them up and out onto that ledge and soon fall in love. Finch starts to bring Violet out of the grief she's been wrapped in for the past year, and with Violet Finch can truly be himself. Can Finch and Violet help each other to stay in this "messed-up world"?
Is It Any Good?
ALL THE BRIGHT PLACES is a heartbreakingly vivid story that ultimately conveys hope while remaining true to the characters. Author Jennifer Niven's believable, relatable voices alternate between high school seniors Finch and Violet, but it's Finch's voice that really drives the novel. Engrossing and compelling, like watching a train wreck, Finch's authenticity and vulnerability keep the pages turning and the reader rooting for him to make his way through this world. Violet's voice is equally realistic and believable, and teens will really relate to her struggles to emerge from grief even if they haven't experienced grief themselves.
Niven raises a lot of questions about life, death, suicide, mental illness, physical and emotional abuse, and how we stigmatize those who suffer from pain we can't see. She doesn't spoon-feed any answers, but these issues are things we all think about from time to time, and this novel provides a visceral, beautiful way to start a crucial discussion.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about suicide and mental illness. Where can you turn for help? What can you do if you think someone you know is serious about it?
Finch wishes mental illness was seen as the same as a physical illness. Do you think it can be? Why is it such a stigma in our society?
Why do you think the author switches point of view between Finch and Violet? Did both narrators seem realistic to you? Did you like one better than the other? Why?
Book Details
- Author :
- Illustrator : Sarah Watts
- Genre : Romance
- Topics : Friendship , School ( High School )
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Alfred A. Knopf
- Publication date : January 6, 2015
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 14 - 17
- Number of pages : 400
- Available on : Nook, Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
- Last updated : October 9, 2025
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
Suggest an Update
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate