Book Review: True Colors by Abby Cooper

Publisher’s description

Turning Red meets The Giver in this novel about a town where everyone agrees to think positively—but one girl, whose emotions manifest as colors, can’t hide her true feelings.

In Serenity, Minnesota, everyone looks on the bright side, and that’s on purpose: to live in this town, people have to agree to talk positively and only focus on the good things in life. For twelve-year-old Mackenzie Werner, who has the rare gift of her emotions showing up as a colorful haze around her body, this town seems like the perfect place; she’ll never face the embarrassment of a grumbly grapefruit smog if everyone and everything is set up to be happy. But when a documentary maker comes to town and starts asking questions, Mackenzie, overwhelmed with emotion, can’t hold her haze back—and it explodes onto the whole town. Now everyone has their own haze, revealing their real feelings. As Mackenzie learns that emotions go beyond surface level, the whole town must reckon with what it means now that these true colors are on display.

Amanda’s thoughts

I’ve said this before, but: if I’m reading a book as an ARC, I will fold down corners of pages (something I would, of course, NEVER do with a finish book) to remember things I want to go back to if I write a review. And for this book, I probably have 25 pages folded down.

I don’t like toxic positivity. I don’t like performative happiness. I don’t like any messaging that boils down to “just decide to be happy!” or “choose happiness!” etc. That’s all gross and unreasonable and deeply damaging and unhelpful. And the town in this book, Serenity, is about to learn that, too. Serenity is this lovely-seeming little enclave where you apply to live and once you’re there, it’s nothing but cheerfulness and positivity. Everyone should always assume positive intent. Have a permanent attitude of gratitude. Good vibes only.

Maybe that sounds nice to you. It seems okay for Mackenzie, even though she really doesn’t quite fit in in town because she has a condition where her feelings show up as a colored haze all around her. Not only does no one else in town have this, but no one else in town ever shows any feelings other than happiness. They’re squishing it all down and Mackenzie is putting it all out there for everyone can see. When an incident occurs, suddenly everyone in town gains a colorful haze. And guess what? It turns out everyone has been hiding a LOT of feelings. And that’s now obvious. It’s upsetting for a lot of people, but for Mackenzie, who has felt pretty alone and weird, wondering how she can live in such a perfect place and still feel bad and anxious (which has always made her feel like something must be wrong with her), it’s reassuring. She’s not alone in her feelings; she’s just never had the luxury to hide them like everyone else.

Previous to this, everyone in Serenity has enjoyed (or at least felt they should enjoy) a permanent feeling of comfort. But it turns out that feeling uncomfortable feelings, acknowledging them and sitting with them and sharing them with others, has value. Realizing that no one is a happy as they seem has value. Being real will always be better than being fake. It allows people to learn things about you. It allows you to work through things. It offers a connection that can’t come from “good vibes only.” It’s often easier to just seem fine. To laugh. To shrug things off. Mackenzie has struggled with the fact that she can’t do that successfully, but seeing that it’s all been a facade around her? What a revelation. No one is happy all the time. No one feels only one thing. Hiding your true feelings is hurtful, not helpful.

This is the kind of messaging that is important for middle grade readers to learn. That is such a peak time for looking around and feeling like everyone around you is doing great and you alone are having a hard time. Watching the real thoughts and feelings of an entire town burst free will feel refreshing. It’s the kind of honesty we’re not often encouraged to embrace. To see Serenity go from the motto “Where Every Day is a Good Day” to “Where It’s Okay Not to Be Okay” feels so good. Every day cannot possibly be a good day. It just can’t. And for readers feeling their own haze all around them, Mackenzie’s story will show that complicated realities will always be better than empty fictions.

Review copy (ARC) courtesy of the publisher

ISBN-13: 9781662620614
Publisher: Astra Publishing House
Publication date: 05/07/2024
Age Range: 10 – 13 Years

Filed under: Book Reviews