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Invisibly Grace
A brilliant debut novel from an important young Tasmanian voice.
High school is hard enough when you’re healthy. When you’ve got some weird, undiagnosable chronic illness, it’s a special hell.
Invisibly Grace is a contemporary young adult novel set in a fictional suburb of Launceston about a young woman with an autoimmune disease. Her family is new to the state and, to seem normal, Grace tries to hide her invisible illness at her new school. Through the course of the novel Grace makes friends and enemies, adores her sister, gets diagnosed with mixed connective tissue disorder, and looks to a future that she knows isn’t guaranteed.
High school is hard enough when you’re healthy. When you’ve got some weird, undiagnosable chronic illness, it’s a special hell.
Invisibly Grace is a contemporary young adult novel set in a fictional suburb of Launceston about a young woman with an autoimmune disease. Her family is new to the state and, to seem normal, Grace tries to hide her invisible illness at her new school. Through the course of the novel Grace makes friends and enemies, adores her sister, gets diagnosed with mixed connective tissue disorder, and looks to a future that she knows isn’t guaranteed.
- GenresYoung AdultContemporary
281 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2022
1 person is currently reading
29 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
August 12, 2024
Wonderful story, though the main character is incredibly unlikeable and acts much more like a 30 or 40 year old who is tired of your shit than a teenager. At least she owns being a massive bitch.
Needs a good edit. Still not sure if the main character is in grade 10 or 11 as it seems to switch every few pages. PSA for non-Tasmanian readers: Grade 10 and 11 are the difference between high school and 'college', as this book is based in Tasmania and the public schooling system still does Years 11 and 12 very differently to high school (7-10), even though over the past decade the government schools have been transitioning to include Years 11 and 12. Even then, it's often on a different campus. There are only eight dedicated senior secondary colleges (Years 11/12/13) in the entire state, while private secondary schools often combine high school and college. I note that some places in the UK still call those senior years 'college' as well, so this isn't uniquely Australian, it's just the way Tasmania did school for a long time. So yes, for public school kids, high school and college are two very different things, and you attend college for Years 11 and 12 if you want a Tasmanian Certificate of Education and pre-tertiaries to get into Uni.
Other issues include unnecessary dialogue tags. Just needs to be cleaned up by someone who knows what they are doing. However the author clearly has talent.
P 268
'Pretend I'm not going to be in a wheelchair in five years and fill it out like I'm Grace Turing: Real Girl?'
You're still a real person if you use a fucking wheelchair, Grace Turing. I really hope I'm misinterpreting this because it sounds like Grace thinks using a wheelchair makes someone not a real person, which appears to be reinforced a few pages later. With little internal clarification on this fear, it just comes of as ableist which is super weird for a book all about disability.
Needs a good edit. Still not sure if the main character is in grade 10 or 11 as it seems to switch every few pages. PSA for non-Tasmanian readers: Grade 10 and 11 are the difference between high school and 'college', as this book is based in Tasmania and the public schooling system still does Years 11 and 12 very differently to high school (7-10), even though over the past decade the government schools have been transitioning to include Years 11 and 12. Even then, it's often on a different campus. There are only eight dedicated senior secondary colleges (Years 11/12/13) in the entire state, while private secondary schools often combine high school and college. I note that some places in the UK still call those senior years 'college' as well, so this isn't uniquely Australian, it's just the way Tasmania did school for a long time. So yes, for public school kids, high school and college are two very different things, and you attend college for Years 11 and 12 if you want a Tasmanian Certificate of Education and pre-tertiaries to get into Uni.
Other issues include unnecessary dialogue tags. Just needs to be cleaned up by someone who knows what they are doing. However the author clearly has talent.
P 268
'Pretend I'm not going to be in a wheelchair in five years and fill it out like I'm Grace Turing: Real Girl?'
You're still a real person if you use a fucking wheelchair, Grace Turing. I really hope I'm misinterpreting this because it sounds like Grace thinks using a wheelchair makes someone not a real person, which appears to be reinforced a few pages later. With little internal clarification on this fear, it just comes of as ableist which is super weird for a book all about disability.
July 9, 2025
i really enjoyed this!!!! it was so satisfying and daniel was so lovely to grace <3
May 29, 2022
I really enjoyed Grace with her sass, whit and fantastically accurate facts. Grace is such an important character for those who live with chronic illness and disability and very educational to those those who have minimal experience with the topic. I think this is the first book based on a person with chronic illness or disability that I've read in a long time that doesn't end in Munchausens by proxy or some inspiration disability-porn of someone being a better person because they loved someone who was sick or even just glorifying it by glossing over the hard parts or not showing the awkward social interactions, this book is real and captures so many parts of Grace's life, her hobbies, her friendships, her family dynamic, it doesn't solely surround her illness which is the whole point, Grace doesn't want to be known as the 'Sick girl' and it's written in a way that we fall in love with Grace and we learn to understand her through her views and experiences.
It shows the true struggle of what it's like for a REAL teenager in high school not only being a new student to a new school, but a teenager trying to life their life as 'normally' as possible while juggling their illness on top, and just wanting to be included and seen as themselves not as their illness.
I enjoyed so many of the characters and the dialogue in this book, I laughed, I cried, I had moments that provoked deep thoughts and conversations...and I learned a lot of fun, useless trivia that now lives in my brain rent free.
This book is fantastically written, it kept me interested and hooked from the first few pages. This book has also been published in a way that I could read with minimal frustration and anxiety, as a person with dyslexia I am grateful to the author who made me feel seen by choosing a font and sizing that gave me the joy of holding and reading a real book again, I often listen to audiobooks as I struggle with the fonts, spacing and sizing of most books, so I thank you, Avery, I hope there will be many people all around the world that will read this book and feel seen just as I do.
It shows the true struggle of what it's like for a REAL teenager in high school not only being a new student to a new school, but a teenager trying to life their life as 'normally' as possible while juggling their illness on top, and just wanting to be included and seen as themselves not as their illness.
I enjoyed so many of the characters and the dialogue in this book, I laughed, I cried, I had moments that provoked deep thoughts and conversations...and I learned a lot of fun, useless trivia that now lives in my brain rent free.
This book is fantastically written, it kept me interested and hooked from the first few pages. This book has also been published in a way that I could read with minimal frustration and anxiety, as a person with dyslexia I am grateful to the author who made me feel seen by choosing a font and sizing that gave me the joy of holding and reading a real book again, I often listen to audiobooks as I struggle with the fonts, spacing and sizing of most books, so I thank you, Avery, I hope there will be many people all around the world that will read this book and feel seen just as I do.
June 3, 2023
Grace has chronic pain and an undiagnosed autoimmune disorder.
I can see a lot of reviews criticising Grace for being a b*tch, but I never saw it. She’s in constant pain; she was a freaking bastion of sunshine. It was amazing characterisation, and she repeatedly said she wasn’t some inspiration for others to look up to, she was just scared and living day to day. Yes, she repeatedly makes stupid decisions. But have you ever been told you can’t do anything? It makes you want it all the more. Add to that the fact she’s a teenager, and it logically goes exactly where it should. Which is ironic, because she spends the book wanting to be normal, and all her reactions truly are.
There are some great characters in here, and I liked the interplay with her family and the ways they dealt with her condition, and how we see everyone trying to shield everyone else. The sibling love is everything, though the friendships and slow circle of trust being built were a close second, then the teacher support network. Those far reaching threads of impact and basic human decency were interwoven really well, without being preachy.
There are a few consistency errors (like what year of school she’s actually in, and it’s Australia, you don’t go off to college after year 10) but nothing that detracted from my enjoyment of the story.
Her struggles felt so real and the frustration poured through the pages and I couldn’t put it down. This was a one sitting book, and it earned those 5 stars.
I can see a lot of reviews criticising Grace for being a b*tch, but I never saw it. She’s in constant pain; she was a freaking bastion of sunshine. It was amazing characterisation, and she repeatedly said she wasn’t some inspiration for others to look up to, she was just scared and living day to day. Yes, she repeatedly makes stupid decisions. But have you ever been told you can’t do anything? It makes you want it all the more. Add to that the fact she’s a teenager, and it logically goes exactly where it should. Which is ironic, because she spends the book wanting to be normal, and all her reactions truly are.
There are some great characters in here, and I liked the interplay with her family and the ways they dealt with her condition, and how we see everyone trying to shield everyone else. The sibling love is everything, though the friendships and slow circle of trust being built were a close second, then the teacher support network. Those far reaching threads of impact and basic human decency were interwoven really well, without being preachy.
There are a few consistency errors (like what year of school she’s actually in, and it’s Australia, you don’t go off to college after year 10) but nothing that detracted from my enjoyment of the story.
Her struggles felt so real and the frustration poured through the pages and I couldn’t put it down. This was a one sitting book, and it earned those 5 stars.
November 30, 2022
I read this amazing book when I first got hands on it!! I get like I was walking along side Grace and her journey. I enjoyed her witty personality that made me laugh and cry. I enjoyed the story line (SPOILER COMING UP). I read this book back in July (or around this time 😂) and one of the ending scenes of Grace walking at a walking track at camp and being reassured by Daniel and the best most understanding adult, after her illness surfaces, STILL stays in my mind. (SPOILER ENDED).
As a Tassie local, I loved that I could imagine the characters in the areas described throughout the book. (THE SUBLE REFERENCE OF THE BEST MILKSHAKE STORE AND CANDY STORE IN LAUNCESTON HAD ME SCREAMING!!). This book is a win for Tasmania!! Hehe!
EXCELLENT. 10/10. HAVE recommended to a friend. WILL read again!
As a Tassie local, I loved that I could imagine the characters in the areas described throughout the book. (THE SUBLE REFERENCE OF THE BEST MILKSHAKE STORE AND CANDY STORE IN LAUNCESTON HAD ME SCREAMING!!). This book is a win for Tasmania!! Hehe!
EXCELLENT. 10/10. HAVE recommended to a friend. WILL read again!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 3, 2022
If I gave half stars it would get 3 and a half.
I loved the characters, the unique story (that was a little too relatable at times and had me sobbing), weird trivia facts and that it was set in a place near where I live.
I didn't like how overly cliché it became at times, the repetitive language (ex. using the word scared often) and the sometimes glaring spelling/grammar/sentence errors (which I blame more on her editor).
Overall, I did enjoy reading this book (I read it in three days which is impressive given my current reading slump) and recommend it for anyone who needs books about disability, awesome friendship groups and a cute side romance in their lives.
I loved the characters, the unique story (that was a little too relatable at times and had me sobbing), weird trivia facts and that it was set in a place near where I live.
I didn't like how overly cliché it became at times, the repetitive language (ex. using the word scared often) and the sometimes glaring spelling/grammar/sentence errors (which I blame more on her editor).
Overall, I did enjoy reading this book (I read it in three days which is impressive given my current reading slump) and recommend it for anyone who needs books about disability, awesome friendship groups and a cute side romance in their lives.
October 31, 2023
I personally feel other reviewers were way too harsh in their reviews. Maybe the other readers haven’t lived with chronic illness themselves. The main character is likeable and strong in my opinion. Yes she has her grumpy moments, which are a natural part to living with chronic health conditions, but if they hadn’t been included, this book wouldn’t be an accurate representation of the main character’s experience. It was well written and interesting over all. Big pet peeve that “real girl” should have been replaced with “healthy girl”. I totally agree with other reviews on that point. I highly recommend this book.
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April 3, 2023
🩻 Pretend I'm not going to be in a wheelchair in five years and fill it out like I'm Grace Turing: Real Girl 🩻
🩻 What a different book 😍 I loved this unique story, that was incredibly relatable and had me sobbing, as I identified with Grace’s pain 🤣 I really enjoyed Grace with her sass, whit and fantastically bizarre facts ‼️ Grace is such an important character for those who live with chronic illness and disability and very educational to those those who have minimal experience with the topic, and I couldn’t think of another book that showed chronic illness and how we suffer with it 💯 Daniel, her best friend, was the most amazing support for Grace and he saw Grace not as ‘Sick-Girl’ but for her who she is 😁 This wasn’t some sort of disability-inspiration porn either 🤩 I was enraptured as we got to know Grace and her life, her friendships, her family dynamic, her hobbies, it doesn't solely surround her illness which was amazing to be a part of as the reader 🥰
** Thank-you to Avery for sending a physical copy of this book for an honest review 🥰
🩻 What a different book 😍 I loved this unique story, that was incredibly relatable and had me sobbing, as I identified with Grace’s pain 🤣 I really enjoyed Grace with her sass, whit and fantastically bizarre facts ‼️ Grace is such an important character for those who live with chronic illness and disability and very educational to those those who have minimal experience with the topic, and I couldn’t think of another book that showed chronic illness and how we suffer with it 💯 Daniel, her best friend, was the most amazing support for Grace and he saw Grace not as ‘Sick-Girl’ but for her who she is 😁 This wasn’t some sort of disability-inspiration porn either 🤩 I was enraptured as we got to know Grace and her life, her friendships, her family dynamic, her hobbies, it doesn't solely surround her illness which was amazing to be a part of as the reader 🥰
** Thank-you to Avery for sending a physical copy of this book for an honest review 🥰
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews