Juniper Lemons Happiness Index by Julie Isreal is a book that has left me torn.
I admit that I love the concept of this book and personally feel inspired to somehow record my days like Juniper does. I love how friendship is such a key theme of this book and how grief is portrayed.
I do however have a huge problem with the main character Juniper. The main premise of this book follows Juniper as she searches for a lost index card with great anxiety and worry. During her search she finds anonymous notes left behind from others that hint at the authors feeling down. She makes it her mission to find and fix these people. This for me just didnt sit right, The idea that the main character was extremely worried that someone would find her note and know her secret when shes done exactly that is what ruined the book for me. I'm sorry but this wasnt for ,me.

I received a copy from Netgalley.

This wasn’t necessarily a bad book, I certainly didn’t flat out hate it, it just did nothing for me. I wasn’t’ wowed by the storyline or the characters. The novel tells the story of teen Juniper who is trying to cope with the death of her older sister Camie. Juniper’s parents aren’t really coping well at all, her mom is in a state of zombie like shock, and her dad seems quite passive. All understandable given the circumstances. Juniper copes by writing down the positive things about her day on a series of index cards she keeps hidden.

I remember very little about the plot really, nothing about it stuck with me. It felt almost like this was something in some variation or another I have read before. Juniper wasn’t a bad character really. A reasonably nice girl though she did have some anger issues and was a bit sneaky in some respects even though she was trying to help others her actions wound up doing needless emotional damage to other people.

She finds a letter her sister wrote to someone addressed as You. No names. The bulk of the novel centers around Juniper trying to work out who You is and how to get the letter to them. As well as dealing with her own actions the night Camie died. The other storyline involves one of Juniper’s index cards going missing which sends her on a hunt to find it which involves going through the school dumpsters. She winds up connecting with a troubled bad boy with a snarky sense of humour who becomes more of a friend than she would have thought possible given the way they seem to antagonise each other at the start of the novel. She meets another cute boy in joining the school Booster club. She makes a few other friends. There’s a mean girl who keeps popping up being nasty. The search for her index cards leads her to learning some things about other students’ secrets. She tries in her own way to help the more troubled students. Which of course goes wrong at some point.

The end was quite touching when she finally figures out how to do a tribute to her sister’s memory.

Not bad, as I said, but just kind of okay. There was nothing remarkable about the story that stood out for me as a reader.

Okay, firstly, look at that cover, what's not to love? But, as the old adage goes, never judge a book by its cover. Happily, it's just as lovely on the inside. I love stationery and lists and organising, so Juniper's habit of tracking each day's positive and negative aspects on an index card and storing them away, instantly appealed to me. However, her reason for doing this and the fact that she marks each with the number of days since her older sister died, is what really starts this story.
This is a story of friendship and first love and everything you would expect and want in a YA book, but it also looks at grief and how Juniper and her parents cope with it. And I think it was dealt with really well in the book, to the point where it had me in tears in the end. But the driving force behind the story is a secret relationship that Juniper's sister had and is only uncovered after her death when Juniper discovers a letter. This was the thread throughout the book and whilst I understand that the plot needed it, at the end of the book it felt a bit redundant (so hard to really explain without spoilers).
On the whole, I love the cover, I like the story and I really like the concept of index cards as day trackers!

This is a really quick read. I honestly read it in two sittings – and only because I fell asleep the first time. Juniper’s grief is so real, as is her family’s, and the author writes it really well.

I did think the story wraps up a little too well, but otherwise I really enjoyed it. There’s a good cast of characters, and the romance isn’t too in-your-face. The writing is fast-paced enough to keep you interested but not rushed – the story moves at an appropriate pace for its content. This is definitely as poignant as it’s described.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Juniper Lemon is dealing with the death of her sister by trying to keep her memory alive. The main character, Juniper is written so well, the grief she's feeling is almost real. The romance wasn't too in your face as a lot of YA books seem to be lately, I could see it coming from the start, but it wasn't the main theme of the book, which I liked. I did feel as if everything was wrapped up a little too well, all except for who actually is You? I suppose that's the point in the ending though, it doesn't really matter who You is, Juniper has accepted the fact that she will most likely never know. One thing I wasn't the biggest fan of was just how often Juniper gets herself involved in other people's drama, in the beginning it's almost as if she's trying to keep a low profile.
4/5 stars

The idea itself is lovely. Dealing with grief by tracking it daily via a happiness index. For each person the index would be different of course, because what makes one person smile or feel a moment of happiness isn’t always the same for another person.

Think about what kind of things make you happy each day. Even the smallest things count. A memory, an interaction, a piece of chocolate or perhaps just relaxing after a long day. Since the death of her sister Camilla, Juniper has been desperately trying to find her happy. She is so grief stricken that she is trying to grasp what she can from life.

She is also trying to fulfil what she believes to be her sister’s last wish. A letter to her love. So Juniper takes it upon herself to find the mysterious recipient. She is also really invested in making the people around her happy. She does this by playing matchmaker, by saving those around her from possible negative thoughts and bad intentions.

In her quest to survive day by day and to not crumble under the weight of her personal loss, Juniper inadvertently finds herself building friendships, experiencing love and learning a few hard lessons along the way.

The focus is on the people left behind, as opposed to a lot of books that seem to make the dead the main characters. What’s done is done and those who are gone aren’t coming back, so let’s concentrate on the living.

The author tries not to delve too far into the teen drama or rather make the scenarios too candy floss sweet or unicorn eccentric. It is passionate without being soppy, witty without being ridiculous and is realistic in a down-to-earth way. Definitely a read I would recommend.
*Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my copy of Juniper Lemon.*

I've just read a great contemporary book!

4 Stars!

Juniper Lemon's Happiness Index follows Juniper Lemon as she deals with the grief of losing her sister, Camilla in a car accident that she was a part off too, as well as trying to follow the clues that lead to Camie's secret.

The Happiness Index becomes like a way to live on after Camilla. It's like Juniper is reporting to her in some way.

Spoilers below...

We join Juniper when she's going back to school, for a new year without Camilla. This is strange for her.

"My throat is tight with all the changes I carry"

shows just how different life has become without her sister. She is trying not let it affect her but without any friends and her being on her own she's struggling with doing that.

"I can't escape the holes. My life is braided through with my sister, and now that she's gone, everything is coming apart"

details how Juniper is struggling without Camilla. As this is a contemporary novel, the author would have tried to make the grief realistic, I think. This shows that struggle.

We see Juniper fall in love gradually throughout the story with Brand.

"But I no longer feel I'm leaving empty handed"

is what Juniper says when she and Brand start to be more than just acquaintances. This happens over half way through the story so there certainly isn't any instant love. This made the story quite realistic too.

Juniper and the friends that she makes throughout the novel try to work out who was writing to Camilla. The anonymous writer and Camilla referred to themselves as "Me" and "You". This was the only thing that I didn't see resolved anywhere in the story. We might be just meant to draw our own conclusions as to who "You" is but this isn't made clear and kind of leaves the story without any real substance, I feel. That's the only reason this wasn't a 5 Star read for me.

"I really didn't know my sister"

is what Juniper thinks when she's depressed about not being able to tell just who "You" is. Not much is going right for her at this point in the story so I think that plays a part in her depression too. Also she finds out lots of things that she never knew about Camilla when she was alive.

Brand has a drunk/abusive father, although no abuse is ever actually shown happening.

"He used to hit my mom. Now he's started hitting me"

is evidence of Brand's dad's violence.

"You probably spent it on booze already, you drunk"

is Brand's response to a question about money from his father, proving that he's an alcoholic.

Both of the quotes above show that not everybody has a good upbringing but with the right support, they can still be good. Brand quite clearly, won't be like his father.

Parents show up a lot throughout Juniper Lemon's Happiness Index, which is something I feel we don't see too much of in YA contemporary. Juniper's parents ground her at a couple of points throughout the story. One time it's for going in her sisters' room to find clues for "You".

"No effort has been made to continue that conversation—probably cause mom doesn't want to and dad doesn't know how"

shows just how much they're all struggling with Camie's death.

Juniper's parents play a role in getting her to see that not everyone copes with grief in the same way.

"Oh. I'm, uh kind of grounded right now. I don't know if..."

This shows that Juniper wants to go out but is trying to be mindful of her parents' wishes.

"My parents and I aren't on great terms right now"

denotes how Juniper can admit to friends that her and her parents don't get on.

I've read this for the "friendship" part of the Summer Flings Reading Challenge on Facebook because friendship is a big element within the story. Juniper doesn't really have any friends until she starts trying to work out who "You" is. She knows by the end of the story but we don't.

There is a gay character in the story too, although it's not expanded any more than just a character saying this character is gay.

In Juniper Lemon's Happiness Index, I loved the camaraderie between Juniper and the friends that she makes. At first it is just because of her sister, but by the end of the book she realises that they like her for being her. Friendship is really what this book is based on so I'm glad that I read it for this challenge. If I was rating the theme of friendship, I would give Juniper Lemon's Happiness Index book 5 stars but because we didn't actually get the answer of who "You" was anywhere, it's getting 4 stars from me.

Juniper starts out as depressed and wanting answers for why her sister was killed. By the end of the story she knows all that she wants to and feels she no longer needs her crux of index cards because her friends are there instead.

I think I'm going to buy Juniper Lemon's Happiness Index if I see it in my local bookshop so if this sounds like you're sort of read then you'd probably enjoy it too!

I must start this review by simply stating that this is perhaps one of the best YA books of it’s type I have ever read. Here the emotions are truthful and raw without being mawkish. The story approaches loss and grief in such a way that rather than going for the “big weep” as I like to call it, it is more a process of repetitive cracking and solidifying like an ice flow, those fissures creating weaknesses that might be forced open at the slightest pressure of the ocean below.

Juniper is a marvellous character and I loved her unconditionally. Her love for her sister and the guilt she feels over her own emotional outburst that is the catalyst for her search -not only for answers about her sister’s secret, but her own perceived culpability in her sister’s death, made her desperately relatable to me.

Her previous relationships and friendships are fragile and brittle, but the collection of outliers she draws close during her personal journey are the seasoning to this glorious ragout. I fell in love with each of them, the dreamers, the thinkers, the geeks and the rebels in any other setting would seem to be overused tropes but here they became vital and fresh additions. There might have been a love triangle, but Julie Israel never allows her Male protagonists to become truly adversarial which for me is such a boon particularly in a genre where this device has been overused.

The book never allows the reader to know the identity of The Secret love, but this reader has her own ideas about the person Camie might have loved.. the bravery of leaving the question unanswered is a master stroke, in the same way that grief cannot be dealt with uniformly,there are no definitives in love either. We know that Camie’s message is conveyed and that brings peace.

Overall this book was a delight and made me very happy that I shared those chaotic mysterious months with Juniper.

A book that made me smile, despite its theme of grief. Excellent contemporary YA that hits the perfect balance of light-hearted fun and genuine, poignant looks at loss and loneliness. There's also a sprinkling of mystery and surprise throughout the plot, which kept me hooked from beginning till end.

Juniper Lemon's Happiness Index follows Juniper in her daily life after the death of her sister. The main plot arc may be Juniper's search for a specific person related to her sister, but the real focus is on how she deals with grief, how her friends help her and how she impacts the lives of others.

Sweet, engaging and poignant. Recommended for all contemporary fans, especially those looking for something light but that doesn't shy away from difficult emotions.

Juniper allows many things to worry her. But she does have more reason than others to do so. He daily Happiness index cards become an obsession, but one which leads her out of the other obsessive rituals she has created, and allows her to open up and start to accept the death of her sister and to move on with her life. Everyone deals with death in different ways, and although this is very different, there are elements which readers can pick out for themselves to allow them to deal with a similar situation. An excellent novel to help overcome grief, guilt and general young adult life. .

Not my usual read but I must say I was very pleasantly surprised!

Juniper is dealing with her sisters death and goes on a journey to uncover her sisters secrets in the hopes that it will give her some peace. In doing so she discovers more and more about her sister that she never knew.

Such an interesting idea for a book and quite unlike anything I have read before.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an Arc copy in exchange for an honest review.

Juniper's sister persuaded her to start her happiness index, daily cards to write how she's doing every day, but now Camilla is gone and it's harder and harder to find positives to write. When she finds a mysterious letter that her sister wrote before she died, Juniper is determined to find out who it was meant for so she can deliver it herself.
As you read, more of the story becomes clear but the final revelation isn't quite as surprising as the build up makes you expect.

This was a so deep, sweet and strong reading, all at the same time, I've enjoyed it alot

4.5/5 Stars

I want to thank Penguin Random House UK Children's and NetGalley for providing me with this copy in exchange for an honest review

The story follows Juniper who recently lost her sister, so we can see her trying to cope with the pain of having lost a loved one. and how it has impacted on her daily life.
One day Juniper finds a letter addressed to a mysterious "YOU", a letter of rupture written by her sister but which has never been sent, reason why Juniper decides to begin to look for this person to discover who he/she is , but it's also a quest that Juniper hopes will help her close the hole she's been feeling since her sister left

I've really enjoyed the characters, I think everyone has given something special and unique to the plot, although we found some characters that may seem cliché , I think they all play a very important role in the Juniper's life and from the beginning they help with her search in some way or another, besides it's always good to have a great variety of personalities to analyze and to be able to observe different points of view

One of the things I liked the most is the strength that Juniper has during her journey, I think even though she's shattered and deep down she knows she'll never get over what happened, she really tries and every time she falls she gets up again , I admire this character a lot, I can't imagine having such a loss and how he behaved during the book is understandable, in the end I feel that she had a great learning

As I said before the story focuses on the Juniper's search for this person who is totally unknown and mysterious for her, and has been Great, is a very good idea, also make you stay very expectant and make you want to discover what happens next. It has a very deep side that is how to deal with the loss, the suffering, how going forward, the feeling of guilt and many things that have really touched me. In spite of them the book doesn't become too overwhelming or heavy at all, it's fun, light and has given me all those beautiful feelings that I was looking for in a book, I would surely re-read this one

I'm not totally sure about the end, I feel it should have been a bit more closed, but this is of course only my point of view, maybe you feel right about it , I still have enjoyed it, but I feel it had the potential to continue a little bit more

I recommend that you take this book if you're looking for a light reading but full of emotions and with a super important topic as it's how to deal with the loss and to go ahead after it. It has made me spend very beautiful moments, so I would love you to decide to read it to make you feel the same way

This is such a beautiful book about grief, guilt and friendship. It's about how people process and grieve differently. It was interesting to see the family dynamic and how each member of the family were trying to grieve for Camilla in different ways and how it meant that Juniper clashed so much with her mum and how she wasn't able to grieve because her mum got upset every time Camilla was mentioned.

Though Juniper's motives for getting them together may not have been entirely good, I loved the friendship group that formed throughout the novel. It was obvious how close they were growing in such a short amount of time and it felt real. It felt like what you want in a friendship group.

I also really liked the arty stuff. I loved how the idea of the found collages and how Juniper started to express herself through her art.

For friendship, realistic characters and Dala horses, Juniper Lemon's Happiness Index is the place to go.

Let me start by saying I didn’t expect much from this book when I first began reading. I had never heard of Julie Israel, never used Netgalley and had not heard of the book prior to receiving my copy. That being said, I’m so glad I stumbled upon this little gem and it completely outdid all of my expectations.

The story centres around a girl named Juniper Lemon and this lost index card (65). Juniper (in memory of her recently lost sister) writes a number for each day on an index card – a sort of indication of how she rated the day. 65 days after her sister’s passing Juniper loses index card 65 whilst at school and her journey begins with the simple task of finding it. Initially the book reminded me of Fangirl (Rainbow Rowell) in terms of its tone and voice but it quickly became clear that this was more than just a coming of age story. Israel opens up a whole complex and compelling narrative from simply a lost card and really makes it into something special. The ‘underdog vibe’ and diversity of high school characters (the typical bad boy, renowned nerd, new kid and bitchy female bully) kind of toys with the line of being cliché but most of the characters are actually explored beyond that surface level and, ultimately, Israel balances this out really well.

I really liked the way she introduced characters in such a natural way (despite the circumstances under which some of them meet). In particular the friendships between Juniper and the characters she bonds with because of Camilla are simply beautiful. I loved the individuality she gave her characters and Kody and Camilla were the kind of believable, ridiculous friends one really hopes to have in high school. There were moments with them where she (Juniper) suddenly seems to relax and recover a part of herself and that was wonderful to read. I often read parts on the brink of happy tears (though the rest were definitely sad ones.) It really deals with loss in a clever way by telling us of its unbearable qualities and difficulties and sneaking in the positives gently so we actually perceive Juniper’s healing.

The ‘You’ aspect keeps the narrative from stagnating and as I was reading I was a little conflicted that this might take away from the message. Pleasantly, I was wrong and Israel expertly kept the thread from swinging too far away from her harrowing and important subject matter; the ending is perfectly nuanced to both celebrate Camilla’s life but also to bring closure to Juniper’s. Throughout the book she expertly weaves humour and grief together. Everyone has their own coping mechanisms and this little book has so much to teach about love, loss and understanding. It was beautiful to read and actually, I believe, almost restorative. Sometimes it was simply the way Israel talked about grief that had me brimming with tears; and it’s such a realistic demonstration of it. Grief affects people not just when something directly related happens but during the everyday moments in which the person lost is absent. This book really made me feel that.

It also was a nice sized book from a casual reader’s standpoint. It didn’t take too long to read and left me feeling bookishly satisfied. The only real thing I was disappointed by was my own choice to read a digital copy! Both covers (US and UK) are so cute and would’ve made gorgeous #Bookstagram pictures!

But anyway, it was a thoroughly good read and I’m glad it came into my life.

4 out of 5

What can I say about this one? I honestly wasn’t sure about Juniper Lemon in the first few page. It gave me a vibe of Jennifer Niven’s All the Bright Places and I really wasn’t a fan of that book (sorry to anyone whos a fan!)……within a couple of chapters, however, I was hooked. I loved the main characters (Nathan and Brand were THE best YA boy characters I’ve ‘met’ in a while) and I really began to feel for Juniper as she tried her best to keep the memory of her sister alive in her world. I *do* think that fans of All the Bright Places and TFIOS would enjoy this one yet it’s original enough for any non fans to pick up and enjoy. 4 Stars for this one

Juniper Lemon’s Happiness Index is definitely one of those books that will definitely give me a book hangover. This YA book was amazing and I was sad to reach the end of it. Julie Israel’s characters were well developed and the plot was captivating throughout. A fantastic debut.
It has been sixty-five days since Juniper Lemon’s sister died in a car accident. Juniper has taken Camilla’s bag to school with her, a memento to help her through her first day back at school.
As far as she knows Camilla wasn’t dating anyone when she died so she is surprised to find an unsent breakup letter in the bag. The letter is addressed simply to ‘You’ and is dated 4th July – the date her sister died.
Juniper has been keeping index cards to rate the days since Camilla died. Whilst searching for this unknown ‘You’ Juniper loses one of them. Index card 65 has a shameful secret memory on it, one she is desperate to find before her secret gets out.
Juniper Lemon’s Happiness Index begins with Juniper having her class photo taken for the year.
The girl in the picture doesn’t look any different. Things you see: brown eyes. Honey hair to the shoulders. Natural eyeliner.
Things you don’t: stitches. A neck brace. The sleep rings hidden beneath her makeup.
I lower my new student ID card. My throat is tight with all the changes I carry, but won’t find there. Still, I’m grateful not to wear them like a flag on my forehead. Ask me about my tragedy! There’s talk enough without advertising.
Everywhere she goes in school she hears whispers of her name or Camilla’s, whispers that stop when she approaches. Eventually, in despair, she decides to hideout in the library. Kody Hotchkiss sits down with her, not realising who she has sat with until it is too late. Juniper encourages her to stay.
Kody tells her she is hiding from the school bully Morgan Molloy and asks Juniper who she Is hiding from.
'Everyone. But mostly – Lauren.’ Lauren is my real fear today: that the one person I actually want to talk to doesn’t want to talk to me. Maybe what I’m really hiding from is finding out.
One of the striking things about Juniper Lemon’s Happiness Index is the ease with which Julie Israel accurately portrays the ways in which grief can impact someone’s life. A common experience for people who are grieving is that those around them are unwilling to mention the name of the person who died, and also that previously close friends begin to avoid them. Both of these things happen on the first day, Lauren her best friend avoids her, people talk about her and her sister but not one person offers their condolences and one of her teachers begins to mention her sister’s name then just stops like she had never said anything.
Mrs Jacobson, after the briefest moments silence, just picks up and goes to the next kid on the list – ‘Darrin Mills?’ – as if that tiny hesitation hadn’t been there.
As if she had never been there.
Another Camilla-Shaped hole.
The absence of her sister is felt in every area of her life. Juniper’s mom refuses to talk about her and leaves the room whenever Camilla’s name is mentioned. Her father just tiptoes around the topic meaning that she has no one she can talk to about her. She isn’t even allowed in her room because it may upset her mom.
Another blank space. I am haunted by them: the pause at Cammie’s name
The gap in my index. The sidesteps where she should be in conversations, but isn’t. Her empty chair at dinner; her toothbrush and her shampoo; her shoes from the entryway, her keys from the kitchen hook, her tea and favourite cereal from the cupboard…
I cant escape the holes .My life is braided through with my sister, and now that she is gone, everything is coming apart.
Because of this absence in her life Juniper becomes fixated on finding the mysterious ‘You’ from the letter and in any connection she still has to Cammie. Her happiness index was something Camila had encouraged her to start because she felt Juniper had a tendency to be negative about situations. This is why it hits her so hard when she loses one of those cards. She will do anything to get it back, even dumpster diving with the school rebel to try and find it.
Brand inexplicably starts hanging around with her and helps her to try and find the index card. In her search for her index card Juniper discovers the secrets of some of the other students and can’t help herself from trying to fix their problems.
Along the way she learns ways to deal with her grief, and to find a way to live with the loss of her sister.
I don’t want to give any spoilers but I will say that the romance in this book and sweet and one you will be routing for.
This book covers many emotive topics, including grief and bullying. Juniper Lemon’s Happiness Index is not only about grief, it is about the power of friendship and finding romance in unexpected places.
There wasn’t a single part of this book that I didn’t love.