In one impulsive moment the summer before they leave for college, overachievers Scarlett and David plunge into an irresistible swirl of romance, particle physics, and questionable decisions. Told in non-linear, vivid first-person chapters, As Many Nows As I Can Get is the story of a grounded girl who’s pulled into a lightning-strike romance with an electric-charged boy, and the enormity of the aftermath. Cerebral, accessible, bold, and unconventionally romantic, this is a powerful debut about grief, guilt, and reconciling who you think you need to be with the person you’ve been all along.
I’m not a huge contemporary fiction reader. However, every once in awhile I’ll stumble across one that just oof. Get’s to me. As Many Nows As I Can Get was one of those.
As Many Nows As I Can Get is the kind of book you don’t know you need until you read it. I went in expecting an average young adult romance, and was surprised to find a realistic story full of a lot of depth. The book follows a group of intelligent and successful teens who grow up in a small town that, really, kinds of glorifies them, and lets them get away with a lot of questionable behavior.
The author paints this picture through several different points in time, weaving it all together beautifully to slowly bring us back up to the present. Specifically, we see a parallel between the heroine and her love interest; two people who were similar, going down similar paths, with one big difference that resulted in some significant consequences.
This novel covers a lot of heavy, triggering topics (ie- drug abuse, overdoses, abortion), but is much less graphic/dark than similar books, like Crank by Ellen Hopkins. However, if it is something you decide to pick up, it’s one of those books that will change your perspective on adolescence. The commentary on small-town politics, the impact of the educational system, feminism, teenage drug use… it was incredibly fascinating, impactful, and left me in tears.
Maddie
DISCLAIMER: Parts of this review will be/have been (not sure of the time line) also shared by another review source on my behalf, so if you see a review by another Maddie with similar points and wording… that is also me lol! Probably don’t need a disclaimer for that, but my writing consultant side wanted to make sure and kind of sort of cite that.