Extraordinary Means by Robyn Schneider student book review by Nicole

Rating: 4Q4P

Highly Recommended

Once diagnosed with the drug-resistant form of Tuberculosis (TB), Lane moves to the Latham house in order to promote health and wellness until a cure is discovered. The once star student on his way to Stanford has his eyes focused only on keeping up with his education rather than his health; this only has a negative effect on his overall well being and is forced to remove himself from all that he lived for before TB.

Finally discovering his way throughout Latham house, Lane meets a past summer camp acquaintance, Sadie. After a rough start marred by camp memories, the two discover that they are the best of friends, perfect for eachother in the mess of Latham. From sneaking into the nearby town to late night parties the two fall in love- Latham becomes their sick version of paradise.

Once life starts to fall into place, everything starts to go wrong, from tragedies regarding their close friends to the discovery of a cure, life starts to change. Although the news of the cure is amazing, Sadie and Lane are devastated to be separated. Through a culmination of events brought by these changes, Sadie is injured to the point close to death three weeks away from the delivery of the cure. Trying an experimental version of the cure, Sadie ultimately meets her demise through the drug rather than TB or the injuries themselves.

Still affected both by his time at Latham and relationship with Sadie, Lane leaves the sanatorium recognising that life needs to be lived to the fullest in the present rather than just focusing on the future.

This book Extraordinary Means by Robyyn Schneider was a great read and I would love to read it again. Similar to the themes of The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, this novel follows two sick young adults through their time recovering and growing up.

I enjoyed the fiction intertwined with the truth of the real disease. No, there is no TB that is completely drug resistant but the idea of an epidemic such as that is extremely interesting. Also, basing the plot around the patients and their experiences at a sanatorium is another modern way to look at the experiences of those during the major epidemics of TB in the 19th century. Schneider did not just focus on the impacts to the patients, but the extended impacts on the society surrounding and the caretakers within. This created a feeling that this epidemic could truly occur and measures should be taken to account for everyone’s health and safety. Furthermore, I feel that it is extremely beneficial that the author studied medical ethics at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. This provided an added sense of reality intertwined with the clear fiction of the disease.

Despite the amazing plot there are a few mature scenes that a reader should be aware about before reading this novel. To start, drinking and excessive drug usage is highly prevalent throughout the culture of the kids at the Latham House. Furthermore, the relationships formed throughout the sanatorium tend to end in hooking up in the forest. Regarding relationships, the mini love triangle between Sadie, Lane, and Nick was not executed as best as it could have been. It was between existing and not; I feel that Schneider should have chosen between the two rather than having it fluctuate.  

As a clearly well researched and written novel, any teenage student would love to read this book. For a teacher, literary analysis is plentiful; whether it be determining plot points such as debating where the climax rests, the character development of Lane regarding his personal values such as education vs. school life, or the influence of technology or nature on daily life, anyone could find anything to track throughout this novel. This book easily fits within a high school library. If a librarian would like to feature it on a themed shelf, I would recommend placing it with books such as The Fault in Our Stars or Wonder.