Review: The Switch Up - Katy Cannon

The Switch Up by Katy Cannon, published by Stripes on 13th June 2019

Synopsis:
LAX Departure Lounge. Two girls board the same flight to London as complete strangers. When the plane touches down, it’s the beginning of the craziest plan ever. Can Willa and Alice really swap lives for the summer?
Things are going to get complicated...

 

Review:

Katy Cannon is my go-to author for contemporary YA with a solid heart of gold. I loved her previous books 'Love, Lies and Lemon Pies' (read my review here), as well as 'Secrets, Schemes and Sewing Machines' (read my review here).

 

Katy's latest book 'The Switch Up', was high on my list of titles I was looking forward to being published this year. It is the perfect summer read for either sitting with on the beach or reading during some downtime on a city break. I devoured it in one sitting and am now desperately hoping that there will be a sequel.

 

'The Switch Up' follows in the same vein as Freaky Friday and The Parent Trap. It features two girls, Alice and Willa, who on the spur of the moment, decide that they will swap lives for the summer. Willa ends up in London and Alice in Italy, pretending to everyone around them that they are someone else. The book alternates between the two girls as they face new adventures, make new friends and ultimately learn some big lessons about themselves.

 

Alice was my favourite of the two because I seemed to identify with her more. She likes to please people, she likes to feel in control of things around her and she likes to have everything planned out. Spontaneity is not something that is normally associated with her but when she has a chance meeting with Willa at the airport, she is convinced to swap places and ends up spending the summer in Italy with Willa's Aunt Sofia and her foster children. There are lots of layers to Alice's story and I thought that Katy Cannon handled this with a deft touch. She highlights some of the stresses and insecurities that Alice has been dealing with, while also allowing her to blossom and grow in confidence.

 

Willa ends up in London with Alice's potential stepmother Margo. She meets a friend of Alice's called Hal, who helps her to hide her real identity. Willa is extremely confident and outgoing but she too has secret worries and fears, as well as family problems to face up to. I enjoyed seeing her become more aware of others around her and their feelings, as she discovers some painful truths about herself.

 

'The Switch Up' was a sparkling read which I thoroughly enjoyed. Katy's storytelling is exceptional and her books are the perfect reads for young teens. The story explores common issues such as family, identity and friendship, while also weaving in light touches of romance. While I was reading, I could almost feel the sun on my face and the sand in my toes. A superb contemporary YA that was enormous fun to read.

Blog tour: The Switch Up - Katy Cannon guest post

I am thrilled to be taking part in the blog tour for Katy Cannon's new book 'The Switch Up'. I finished reading this a few days ago and absolutely loved it. Don't forget to stop by the blog next week to read my full review. It's the perfect summer read to pack in your suitcase!

For today's blog tour stop, I have a fantastic guest post from Katy herself. It's the ultimate 'Surviving Summer: An Introvert's Guide and it's a great read that I could really identify with.

Summer is a great time for getting together with friends, going out and doing things, and making the most of the great weather. Of course, for introverts (like me) it’s also a time to start panicking about being expected to do All The Peopling All The Time.

Don’t get me wrong; I like people, I like spending time with friends, and I like getting out and doing things. I even like sunshine, as long as I have enough sunscreen on. I just find all of the above – what I call Peopling - mentally and physically exhausting, after a while.
So, over the years, I’ve come up with my own methods for keeping my summers fun and enjoyable, not overwhelming. Here they are:

1. Build In Downtime. If you know that spending a lot of time with loads of people is going to leave you exhausted, try to schedule your summer so you have breaks between big social gatherings. This might take a bit of planning, but having a day – or even a morning, afternoon or evening – to yourself between commitments with friends or family will help you re-energise and enjoy your time with others more.

2. Make Your Own Fun. You don’t have to spend your time alone moping in your room or doing homework though (well, not all of it, anyway). Try jotting down some activities that do give you more energy and make you happy. Mine include reading, getting outside in the sunshine for a walk (or more reading), listening to podcasts, going to the cinema - or a museum or exhibition - by myself, following an online yoga video, and daydreaming (which sometimes turns into napping). Whatever your list is, having it there in front of you when you get your downtime will remind you of all the fun things you can use it for.

3. Pick Your People. Even for us introverts, some people are more draining than others – and a select few can even make us feel better than or as good as being alone! So pick who you spend your summer with carefully. Okay, so you can’t choose your family, and friendship groups often include at least one person who doesn’t thrill you, but just thinking about how different people make you feel can be a starting point. Even a subtle shift towards spending more time with those people who energize you, and building in more downtime between time spent with those who don’t, can help improve your summer.

4. Set Goals and Say No. These two sort of go together. If you’re anything like me, saying ‘no’ to people who want to spend time with you can be difficult. I’ve found that what helps me is having a really good reason I can’t hang out. So, I always keep a summer goals list – maybe a handful of books I want to read, an exhibition I want to visit, a project at home, that sort of thing. Then, when I need to not be Peopling, I can say with confidence that I have something else I really need to do that day. Because I do. It’s on my list, and it matters to me – and friends will respect that. (Really good friends will also totally understand if you tell them ‘I can’t People today. Can we People tomorrow?’ incidentally.)

5. Be You – and Love It. Above all, embrace being an introvert! All it means is that you find more energy in time alone than in large groups – like a third or more of the population. Introverts tend to be more thoughtful and reflective – which can lead to being more creative, more empathetic and able to build long lasting friendships. So, love who you are, and love summer again!

Huge thanks to Katy for writing such a lovely guest post and don't forget to check out all of the other stops on the blog tour. My review will be going live on the blog on publication day (13th June).