Five Feet Apart, by Rachael Lippincot, is a story about two teenagers, Stella Grant and Will Newman. 

Stella is chronically ill with cystic fibrosis (a genetic condition that affects a protein in the body, which in turn affects the body’s cells, tissues, and glands). Due to this condition, she has been in and out of hospitals for treatments, and her life mostly revolves around this. 

In the book it is shown that Stella is a rule follower and a complete control freak about following her treatment regimen so she can maybe be lucky enough to get a lung transplant. Throughout this difficult journey, Stella made a YouTube channel to educate people on CF and share her life with thousands of viewers. Stella also has a best friend named Poe who also has CF, so they mostly communicate through calls and text messages since they are not allowed to be within six feet of each other because they don’t want to share bacteria.

Will is a new patient at the hospital for CF. Will’s rich mother had him participate in clinical trials all over the world, but nothing has helped. This is because on top of having CF, he has a condition called B. cepacia. This makes him ineligible for a lung transplant and more dangerous to other patients with CF.

Stella and Will end up meeting in the hospital and fall in love. However, if Stella catches the disease that Will has, she would get crossed off the list of people for the lung transplant. This makes it very hard for them to have a relationship because they can’t touch each other, let alone approach each other closer than six feet. So the more they fall in love, the more rules are broken. For example, Stella makes a rule that they can be within five feet of each other instead of six.

This book is recommended to people who are fans of YA romance as the book’s message is that even if you are different and have difficulties to deal with, whether that be in life or health, you can still find love, and it might be where you least expect it.

Readers will not be able to put this book down as it is intriguing and emotional, and it has both relatable and likable characters. This story is also told in two different perspectives that make the book so much better since they are interconnected and compliment each other.

Warning: This book may bring you to tears. It is heart-felt and educates as well as sheds light on cystic fibrosis. 

Overall, if you’re a reader who likes forbidden romance books with a different twist, then this book might be for you!