Am I Normal Yet? is the debut novel of the Spinster Club series written by young adult author Holly Bourne. The book centers on Evie Crane, a sixteen-year-old girl with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder trying her best to manage friendship, feminism and boys without falling apart. That can't be too hard... right?
Tropes in this work include...
- All Girls Want Bad Boys: Discussed. Lottie and Evie both find themselves falling for rude, aggressive "alpha male" types and (as devout feminists) are naturally surprised about this finding.
- All of the Other Reindeer: Implied. Evie mentions not being particularly popular before switching schools, due to being simply known as "the girl who went crazy" among her peers. Her sister Rose also turns out to be the victim of severe bullying.
- Ambiguously Gay: Amber - who doesn't have a boyfriend yet and isn't particularly feminine - is swarmed by lesbian rumors at her school. Even Evie admits to having speculated about it before.
- Blonde, Brunette, Redhead: Evie is blonde, Lottie is dark-haired and Amber has red hair.
- Brainy Brunette: Lottie, who has long dark hair and is described by Evie as a genius. She even has her sights set on Cambridge.
- The Charmer: It's implied that Lottie's very sexually active (especially for being sixteen), making both Amber and Evie jealous due to how many guys she manages to attract.
- Childhood Friends: Evie and Lottie knew each other as children, but drifted apart once Evie's OCD started getting worse and made her quit public schooling.
- Destructive Romance: As attractive as she may find him, Evie's relationship with Guy isn't exactly the healthiest, as frequently pointed out by her feminist best friends.
- Deadpan Snarker: Amber, who's cynical wit is hard to go amiss (especially when narrated by the shy and innocent Evie). Lottie also qualifies, albeit to a lesser extent.
- Did Not Get The Guy: Both Ethan and Guy end up being more than a little problematic, with the former sleeping with someone else on their first date and the latter subscribing heavily to sexist ideals. The epilogue implies that there's hope for her and Oli, though.
- EasilyEmbarrassedTeen: Played with.
- Freaky Is Cool: Downplayed, but Ethan shows a considerable interest in Evie's less conventional aspects, saying that she's "on the cute and kooky side of weird".
- Friends with Benefits: What Lottie's posh boyfriend presumes their relationship is, much to her disdain.
- Good Bad Girl: Lottie, who's intelligent and brave as well as being openly sexual with numerous partners. None of this is treated as a contradiction (they are feminists, after all).
- Huge Schoolgirl: Amber is very self-conscious about her height.
- I Just Want to Be Normal: Evie is coming off medication to treat her obsessive-compulsive disorder and wants to be able to function as a "normal" teenage girl, being able to manage her condition without letting it take over her life. Part of her obsession with boys is due to her wanting to prove this to herself.
- Intercourse with You: Played with. Despite Evie's innocence and aversion to sex, it's implied that her risqué encounter with Guy would have turned into full-blown sex if she hadn't thought better of it last minute.
- There's also a scene in which Lottie describes sex with her boyfriend, though it's not graphic enough to border on obscene.
- Neat Freak: Evie has OCD which manifests in a compulsion to be clean, often leading to intense hand- or body-washing whenever she's feeling particularly anxious. The constant washing leaves her with painful sores and peeling skin. After nearly having sex with Guy, she tries to wash herself clean with bleach and burns herself.
- Nervous Wreck: Evie, particularly when she's in a new situation where her OCD acts up. Oli is implied to suffer from some kind of anxiety too.
- Nice Girl: Evie, though considering she's a sixteen-year-old girl, she does have her fair share of slip-ups (for example, when she lashes out at Amber over a concern about boys).
- Parental Issues: It's shown that Amber doesn't exactly have the best home life, an issue further expanded upon in the sequel ("How Hard Can Love Be?").
- Redheads Are Uncool: Played with. Amber laments her ginger hair and often describes herself as homely, but it doesn't appear as if any other characters share this view.
- Sex Equals Love: Implied. Evie sleeps with Guy to appear more "normal", but is shocked when she discovers that he doesn't desire her for more than just her body. Played for Drama.
- Smart Girl: Both Evie and Lottie are implied to be very intelligent, and have extensive thoughts and vocabulary when it comes to their beliefs (particularly feminist ones).
- Smitten Teenage Girl: Evie for Guy, Ethan and Oli, though it's not so strange considering the fact that she's never had a boyfriend in her life.
- Jane towards new boyfriend Joel, since she never stops talking about him and has even changed her look and personal interests to reflect his.
- Stepford Smiler: Evie feels pressured to maintain the facade of being "normal" and having a happy life, ignoring the fact that she's having a relapse until it's far too late. Her sister Rose turns out to be doing the same thing and eventually reveals she's being bullied.
- Their First Time: Evie tries to rush hers with Guy in a desperate attempt to be a "normal girl", but she gets cold feet at the last minute and goes home.
- Uptight Loves Wild: Evie is shy and high-strung, but feels insanely attracted to the Troubled, but Cute Guy. Of course, it doesn't end up well for them.
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Values Dissonance: Discussed. Being teenage girls, the Spinster Club aren't exactly perfect feminists, and they often admit to unconsciously perpetuating sexist ideologies. They're doing their best to get better, though.
