I'll admit that I got this book as I watch, and love, Carrie's
videos. I'm not usually a reader of non-fiction, so this book was a completely
new experience for me. I have to say that I was surprised at first with how
much I liked this book. I had been expecting a few anecdotes and some advice
that wouldn't really apply to me, yet I found myself with a key to a window
into Carrie's past and a book that I feel I will turn back to again and again
whenever I'm in need of advice on what is the right decision to make or how to
deal with certain situations. I think this book has been a real eye-opener into
how I should be living my life.
Personally, I really liked the set-up of this book. It being
split into acts, having the curtain call and the props section; all these
things made the book come alive and that combined with the style of writing
made me feel as if I were talking to Carrie over a cup of coffee rather than
reading words she had typed up.
On her channel Carrie often describes herself as a 'big
sister' and while I don't have any of those, if I did, I imagine that the
advice she would give to me would be much the same as what is contained within
these pages. Obviously, everyone has different life experiences that they draw
from so the chances are that I won't experience some of the things that Carrie
describes in her book, but everyone has more in common than they might think.
While some of the chapters may not apply to me, it is still good to learn about
experiences that others have had because that way we learn to not treat
everyone the same and be respectful of other people as we don't always know
what has shaped their opinions or what they have gone through in the past.
This book also dealt with some quite dark topics that at the
moment people are only just starting to open up about. People are no longer
expected to button up when certain topics are raised and it feels good to know
that in a book that is aimed at teenagers who may be experiencing some of these
darker areas, someone is willing to open up and offer help in the ways that
they can.
As well as that, 'All I Know Now' is an important reminder
that nobody's life is perfect. Often when people present themselves to a group
of people they will only show certain aspects of their personality to make it
seem to others that they are living an amazing life. For most people though,
that's not the truth. Carrie demonstrates this not only through retelling her
past experiences, but also by exploring how other people's lives aren't perfect
and by doing that she is telling the readers of her book that they don't have to pretend to be perfect as nobody
truly is. To me, that is really important as in today's world when people feel
that they need to be, it's nice to have someone who you look up to tell you
that you are great just the way you are.
Already, this book has helped improve me as a person, at
least, I believe it has. The other day I was interrupted by my grandparents as
I was doing a past question in preparation for an exam and it is fair to say
that I got a bit annoyed. Sometimes the pressure builds and one final spark can
set me off. Normally I would have acted like what I did was totally in
proportion, but then I thought back to the chapter on apologising and I came to
the realisation that I needed to say sorry to them for lashing out. So, I did. It
was difficult to admit that I was in the wrong as I'm someone who always likes
to be right, but the situation ended better for it.
The only thing I could nit-pick at with this book would be
the use of the word 'gotten' and that really is just me being very picky about
the English language. Apart from that, there is nothing that I dislike about
this book. Carrie never oversteps her boundaries and by looking in the back of
this book at the Props section, I can really tell that while Carrie is offering
advice, she also understands that sometimes more help is needed than she can
offer. Reading a book by such a grounded and insightful person really was a
pleasure.
This book will definitely be going somewhere where I can
easily reach it for those moments when I feel like I need help or advice and if
you're a teenager, just turned adult or anyone for that matter, well, maybe
over the age of eleven or twelve, then I would really recommend this book for you.
At this moment in time you may feel like you don't need to read it, but once
you have you'll wonder how you lived without it's teachings before. As a bonus,
the illustrations are gorgeous.
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