First I would like to thank Netgalley for the opportunity to review this book and also to apologize for it being late.

Now on to the review.

This book ultimately was a three star for me. I found some issues with the formatting which was probably because it was an ARC. Also, it was a bit confusing.

I like Ele. I found her story inspiring and sad. It took me a really long time to figure out who the others were. I won't explain who they are as I'm trying for spoiler free but it's ultimately sad and awe-inspiring.

Jack was a big surprise and also a sad part of the story. I wonder what other talk is? There own made-up language?

Willow first is a weird name for a boy but that's a side personal note. I prefer the Will his dad called him. I felt bad for Will and his dad too. Both had their own burdens as well. But they took care of Ele well considering.

Also, I was very confused why neither took action when they found Ele? That doesn't make sense to me.

Wow! Well, I could go for the easy comparison here and cite the similarities between the plot here and Room (Emma Donoghue), but that would be selling Outside short.

Sarah Ann Juckes has taken the premise of a child growing up trapped and isolated and given it a fresh voice of its own… Ele’s voice.

Ele is our main character and she is fierce and brave and scared and determined and so very strong. Her life is devastatingly bleak and yet she faces it; more than faces it, she faces it down!

I will warn that the whole book is pretty much trigger after trigger. There is child abuse and neglect, sexual assault, physical violence. No gratuitous details are given, but the peripheral details – the smells and sounds, hints and hesitations – paint a clearer picture than anything graphic could. I felt nauseous and rage-filled from the first few pages to the end.

There are plenty of mysteries to solve along with Ele as she attempts to improve her situation. Whilst she tries to figure out whether Outside exists and how she would vanquish a dragon, the reader ponders who (or what) the Others may be, how Ele ended up there, and how she can possibly get (and stay) away.

The ending was perfect. I didn’t see what was coming, and thought the author captured a nice balance of revealing and holding back; sadness and hope.

If you can stomach a tough and heartbreaking story, expertly told, with a compelling and memorable narrator, then Outside is for you. Bring tissues and a pillow to punch.

Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog

An excellent read - this book surprised me. It reminded me a little of the movie called Room in the sense that the child the book focusses on has lived in a room all their life and he finally gets to see and experience the real world when he escapes. Outside was like that but told from Ele's perspective. She's been stuck in this room for as long as she can remember but she's used the world of fairytales in the books she's read to learn about the Outside. There's also Him - the guy who has her locked up and comes in now and again to abuse her.

It's disturbing what this man does to her, especially as we find out later who he is. However, one day Ele escapes and it's hilarious when she does because she's looking for giants, princes and greenery. Ele mistakes cars for dragons and it's sweet but sad when the reader sees the world from her eyes.

Fav quotes:

I ain't sure what to say next. Fair to say that I ain't got much experience when it comes to meeting Giants. Feels like someone's got to say something soon, though, as all the words we're not saying are making this place awful stuffy.

The moon, Shining. On me.
I smile so wide my teeth feel cold. But I'm feeling that moon - the real goddamn moon - on my face, all warm like a kiss. It's a bendy moon - half there, like someone has chewed it and been thoughtful enough to leave some for me. Ain't nothing as beautiful as no moon.

And I know what you're thinking. What kind of person spends all their whole life wanting to be Outside, then can't stand it none when they are? I know. I'm thinking it too.

Outside by Sarah Ann Juckes is breathtakingly deep, heartbreaking and incredibly insightful. This darkly fascinating novel considers upbringing and how it effects children, as well as the relationship between parents and children. The elements of this book where learning and language are considered are truly thought-provoking, as it causes the reader to question what they could learn if they were never taught anything. A cross between Room by Emma Donoghue and My Absolute Darling by Gabriel Tallent, this is an outstanding YA novel. Outside by Sarah Ann Juckes was published yesterday by Penguin Random House Children's. 

Trigger warning: child abuse, captivity

The story
Without spoiling the novel, Outside begins with Ele's story, as she is living trapped in a 'tower' with what she calls 'Others', being visited by 'Him' once a week and fed cattle feed through a trough every day. 'He' is a disgusting dominant male figure who takes advantage, while Ele gets through it by talking to the 'Others' and playing with them. When she manages to break free one day, she runs and finds a boy who offers to take care of her. From here on out, Ele will discover exactly what she is capable of and learn to be an 'Outside person' who can face her fears and the disturbing truth.
Why this is a stunning book
Outside by Sarah Ann Juckes is incredible because it analyses the psyche of a captive child without making Ele too primitive. Juckes does not condescend her lead character, giving her animalistic traits compliant with her being locked up for years of her life, while allowing her to have human characteristics, including imagination and intuition. I love that the Inside and Outside parts of the story were woven effectively so that it was not as though she completely forgot where she came from after leaving.
The characters in this novel are so well-written and thought-through; Ele is clever and caring, whilst being wary of the people that she meets. Willow is a kind, damaged soul who would help Ele come what may and Ezra is a man who is willing to change and wants to be a great dad, but struggles with his own loss. 'He' is despicable, and the ending of this book is greatly satisfying while also rather harrowing. I very much enjoyed the character interactions which showed their true natures, especially things such as Ezra's old house and the willow tree. Elements such as this make this book incredible, as it makes you question what you think you know about each of the character archetypes.

Overall, Juckes has done an incredible job of taking dark themes of captivity, child abuse and the lasting effects of these and putting them into a book appropriate for teenagers and young adults. I give Outside 5*, and would recommend Outside to anybody who enjoyed Room, as the childlike language and understanding of the things around the captive child are similar, but also to people who are looking for a darker novel which has strong themes of friendship and family dynamics. Thank you to PRH Children's and NetGalley for my e-arc of Outside by Sarah Ann Juckes in exchange for an honest review. Outside is out now.

Intriguing story of Ele who is an Insider wanting to break free and become an Outsider.

Life as Insider is not great, she has books and stories that lead her to believe life as an Outsider has to be better. She works on her strength and confidence to attempt to break free. Is this life better? Is her attempt successful?

An enjoyable book that is worth reading. Not my usual type of book but read in one sitting. Thought provoking.

What an absolute gem of a book this is!

A modern day fairytale of escaping the evil witch. Except the evil witch is a male captor who has no intentions of letting his prisoners go. That is until the day Ele finally finds the courage to escape, run and never look back.

Loved this book so much I read it within a couple of hours. Thank you Sarah Ann Juckes.

This is the story of Ele who is held captive on the ‘inside’ with the others who are not like her , she dreams of the outside just like in her books and is always looking for proofs it exists , when she escapes and truly discovers the outside , she meets dad and willow who help her on the outside and we learn her story . This book is both harrowing and courageous and is well written, I did find Ele’s narrative was not the easiest to read and it took me a while to get used to it but understood why she spoke like that as she didn’t have all the words and had a limited volcabulary, I liked the twists and turns and had to keep reading to get answers, I am glad I tried something different to my usual reads

Ele and the Others have been trapped inside by Him for as long as she can remember. Ele knows there is a world Outside, but can she ever get there?

This book was a quick read for me. I found that after a very slow start, the story began to pick up about a third of the way in, and by then I definitely wanted to know what had happened to Ele. The language used took a little getting used to, but it was understandable when you consider Ele and the Others had no other frames of reference apart from some children's books. I rate this one a solid 3.5 stars.

TW: some descriptions of child abuse, thankfully not too graphic.

Thanks to NetGalley and publishers, Penguin Random House UK Children's, for the opportunity to review an ARC.

I was initially intrigued by the premise of this book an really wanted to enjoy it, however, this one wasn't quite for me. I really struggled with the way in which the story was told. While I understand that Ele isn't meant to be able to convey what is going on with her speech, I found this really difficult. For the most part I struggled to understand what was going on and as a result struggled to connect with the story.

Thank you to the publisher, author and Netgalley for this opportunity.

I loved this book a lot, however i found the beginning a bit suspenseful for my anxiety. After about 1/3 of the book i was ok and really enjoyed the bravery of Ele and her personality evoloving.

Totally different concept . Why has Ele and her companions never been outside?
Who is "Him" why does he keep them all here ?
Who taught Ele to read ?
So many questions? I needed answering that kept me hooked on this book .
Different but worth a read

# Outside# Netgalley
This is a rare read, and so different to any other book I have read. It’s a book from Elle’s point of view, her friends are very very different from the fairytale books she’s read of the outside. I didn’t find it strange at all the way Ellie spoke not having been taught properly. However she’s determined to escape to see if the outside really exists and to see if it’s like her fairytale. When will came along and although he really could not fully understand Elle’s wonderments and feats he does try to help her. It’s a dark read but one worthy of reading. I would recommend it, you just have to understand Elle’s speech is different, don’t let this put you off such a interesting and in places heartbreaking book, definitely worth reading

#ProofOfTheOutside is all that Ele wants. She has lived Inside forever, with automatic lights, dry feed, a tap and the Others, creatures who don’t believe the Outside exists, who don’t look like Ele. Oh and Him, the jailer, the one who hurts Ele and has killed her friend Zeb. Ele is determined to escape to the Outside, a world which she imagines to be like in the one she has read in her book of fairytales.

You are taken along on the journey through the viewpoint of Ele, who doesn’t have a good vocabulary which can be a little distracting, but I quickly got used to it. I didn’t expect the reveals at the end, and most things are wrapped up well. This isn’t the story that I thought I was reading! I would recommend it.

Thanks to #NetGalley and the publisher for my free advance copy in return for an unbiased review.

Outside is such. a. CAPTIVATING. read. I honestly couldn't put it down once I met Ele and all of the quirks she's developed as someone on the Inside.

Ele lives on the Inside with the Others, her only friends and companions. They pass each day together, but Ele always has a longing to be on the Outside. She reads about the Outside in her fairytales and hopes that one day she, too, will live on the Outside and get to see everything that is so wonderful about the Outside.

As heartbreaking as her story was at times, Ele is brave, and Sarah Ann Juckes did a wonderful job of reminding readers of that throughout the book. I absolutely adored Ele and Willow and Ezra-Dad and thoroughly enjoyed riding along with Ele as she discovered her world. I don't want to say too much because I don't want to give anything away, so I'll just say this: Read. This. Book.

This is quite a complex book in many ways. There is Inside and the Outside, if it exists. Ele is not sure if the Outside exists and her friends Inside are very different from her. It is only when she escapes from the hard life which is all she has ever known that her experiences of all that is so new on the Outside are described so cleverly in these new conditions. She is helped by a young boy, Willow, who befriends her and wants to help her although he does not really understand her lack of experience. and where she comes from.
This book has been compared to Room by Emma Donoghue but I think the approach by this author is very different. All is not as it seems and there are more issues to be considered than first observed.
The descriptions are very clever and this YA novel would make an excellent book for class discussion.
Many thanks to Netgalley/Sarah Ann Juckes and Penguin Random House UK Children's for a digital copy of this title. All opinions expressed are my own.

Ele has spent her life trapped. She knows there's Outside. But she's never seen it.

The only life around her are the Others. And, of course, there's Him. And He has not been good to her.

Outside is a very peculiar story. Narrated by Ele herself, it starts in a very vague manner, with the girl trying to explain her situation. Although the whole concept sounded very promising, the story's narration, as well as the writing style, made this very difficult o read. The flow was hindered by the way the main character is supposed to talk, and the information about Ele's whole situation is given in so slow a pace, that it takes a very long time to understand what is actually going on.

This was a difficult book to read- at least to start with. It took a long while to get into the style of writing & the strange story. However before long I realised that this was a book where I really wanted to find out what it was all about.

I have never read 'Room' but from reviews I gather the premise is similar so I did not have any preconceived expectations. Normally I give a short precis of the plot but with this one I suggest you read it for yourself. I'm glad I did as it will be a while before I forget this one.

Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read this unusual book.

I intended to pick this book up and read a couple of pages. 2.5 hours later I have finished it.
What started out as morbid fascination turned out to be a beautiful wholesome (kind of) tale;
Of Ele, in the worst imaginable situation, growing and escaping through shear determination.
This was a brilliant brilliant read.

My dear goodness. 5:23 am and I’m booing like a banshee after racing through this read..
I don’t quite have all the words for this story - original, harrowing, heartbreaking, amazing, very dark, but with a second half that leaves you hopeful.
It’s being compared to The Room, but I found this very different and better in many ways, as we get to see more of the ‘after’.
I don’t want to put any spoilers, but as it’s batched as YA, I’d just say it’s not for the faint hearted!

I am so glad I didn't read much about this book before I read it because knowing more would have ruined it for me so I shall keep this review spoiler free.

***

Ele lives Inside a Tower with the Others but she dreams of one day being an Outside person.

***

At first, I found Ele hard to connect with. Her voice seemed so disorientating and it took me a while to get used to the writing style but I am so glad I persisted because I grew to love and adore Ele.

Ele is the kind of person who is impossible to dislike! Her spirit is uplifting and inspiring. Despite all of the hardships she has faced, she remains so bright and positive. Her childish spirit and love of reading resonated with me. The way she describes seemingly mundane sensations made me reevaluate how I view the world. Ele brought magic into even the simplest of activities and I am tempted to reread this book just to experience the world through Ele all over again.

In the beginning, I was unsure as I found the writing difficult to get into but I'm so glad I continued to read because once I got to know Ele I flew through the book. The plot is unique and thrilling, especially the ending.
If you'd like to read a book with a determined, creative and entertaining character then Outside is the book for you.

I'd like to thank Netgalley for giving me an eArc of this novel in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.