Kai Spellmeier's Reviews > All the Rage

“You know all the ways you can kill a girl?

God, there are so many.”

This book hurts. It's like an open wound, oozing and burning. It needs a lot of stitches. And while this book alone won't heal the life-threatening wound that is rape culture, it might hopefully open people's eyes.

I am glad that All the Rage doesn't romanticise the harsh reality of rape and the trauma and struggle it leaves behind in a world that blames a rape victim for being raped in the first place. A world where we show compassion to someone whose life might be ruined because they are being accused of rape, instead of giving it to the person whose life has been ruined already. A world where "boys will be boys", a world where we shut our eyes and ears to injustice.
All the Rage made me furious but it also gave me hope. Whenever I read books like Courtney's, my faith in YA fiction is restored. Her stories are ugly because they are true, they hurt because they are brave, they are important because they are powerful and give a voice to so many that have gone unheard before.
While I enjoy cute, funny, feelgood YA, my favourite books in this age group are those that empower. Books that educate teens and young adults, books that lend comfort and strength, books that don't underestimate them but empower them to speak up. All the Rage is that book. Loud, feminist, real.

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