Out of Body by Nia Davenport is a YA body-swap adventure that teens will love! Great writing and a fun premise that will be oh-so-easy to booktalk with a roomful of teens. Highly-recommended for high school libraries!
This review is spoiler-free until I get to the “What I Didn’t Like” section. I will warn you first, but this is your heads-up in case you plan to read Out of Body yourself.
Author: Nia Davenport
Publication date: February 6, 2024
Genre: thriller, science fiction
Setting: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Recommended for: Grades 9-12
Themes: high school, betrayal, identity, identity theft, fitting in, body swapping, self-confidence, friendship problems
Protagonist: female, age 17, African American
Starred reviews: Kirkus
Pages: 272
PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY
Seventeen-year-old Megan Allen has been jumping from friend group to friend group in her high school, trying on identities like outfits.
Nothing ever seems to fit — until she meets LC, the adventurous, charismatic girl who appears at her favorite coffee shop one day like magic. Finally, Megan feels like she’s becoming the person she’s meant to be: someone like LC.
On the night of their friendiversary, what was supposed to be a bonding experience ends in a waking nightmare. Suddenly, Megan is no longer herself.
Too late, she realizes that LC has secrets — dangerous ones. Betrayed by her best friend, thrust into another girl’s life, and targeted by LC’s enemies, she must claim what makes Megan Megan to get her life back…or die trying.
AWARDS AND KUDOS
- Kirkus starred
WHAT I LIKED ABOUT OUT OF BODY
Well, wasn’t this fun?! I was sucked into this story from page one. Strong writing stands out to me immediately, and I love that feeling of reading only one page and knowing I’m in for a treat. Out of Body didn’t disappoint!
There is plenty of action, and the plot moves along nicely. While some parts are predictable, I was never bored.
What I really love about this book is how easy this will be to booktalk with teens. It’s an uncomplicated plot line – a girl goes to a party, takes drugs, and wakes up in another girl’s body.
When booktalking, compare Out of Body to Get Out (thriller) or Freaky Friday (humor). There’s also the YA body-swap book and movie Every Day by David Levithan. High school students may know one or all these films, which will also generate excitement for this book.
WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE ABOUT OUT OF BODY
I read this book quickly. It’s well-paced, particularly in the first half. My only real complaint is in the villain, revealed in about the last 1/3 of the story.
***SPOILERS ON THE WAY HERE…YOU’VE BEEN WARNED!!!!***
The villain is this evil psychological mastermind, but she also feels a bit cartoonish.
She reminds me of the villain scientists in the 1980s movie Innerspace. In that movie, you have these brilliant scientists who, once their evil plot is revealed, become bumbling buffoons that get hoodwinked by three average people, one of whom is actually pretty dumb and clumsy.
It’s all in good fun, of course, but I would have loved to see a more sinister villain in Out of Body. Like the Innerspace villains, she makes stupid mistakes and gets caught by three average teenagers, one of whom mostly just stands there.
That this villain seemed to be working alone was also disappointing and unrealistic. The ending ties up with a nice little bow, but the potential for a sequel is left open when the one villain gets out of prison.
It would have been far more realistic (and set up a better sequel, if that’s the goal) to reveal a whole network of government agents experimenting with this technology. There is no way the US government wouldn’t want a piece of this body-swap tech. Teens looking for that kind of story might prefer BZRK by Michael Grant.
***END SPOILERS***
DIVERSITY
Main characters are Black American teens. The villain is a white woman.
ARTWORK/ILLUSTRATIONS
No artwork inside the book. I like the cover though! It’s a simple design that goes well with the story.
LIBRARIANS WILL WANT TO KNOW
Would adults like this book? YES, I think many would!
Would I buy this for my high school library? YES, 100%. It will be easy to booktalk, and it’s a lot of fun for teens looking for a lighter sci-fi read.
Would I buy this for my middle school library? POSSIBLY. Middle school librarians should be aware of profanity and the use of club drugs in one early scene. It’s pretty clean otherwise. PW, Booklist, and Kirkus all recommend Grades 9+, but SLJ recommends Grades 7+. I’d probably say Grades 8+ due to the drugs.
Would I buy this for my elementary school library? NO – Out of Body is not an elementary book.
MATURE CONTENT
Profanity: multiple instances of the F-word, shit, and hell
Sexuality: talk of wanting to kiss a boy
Violence: body autonomy is a major theme since this is a body-swap story; bodies are forcibly and non-consensually swapped; one character uses a gun as a threat but never fires it; talk of “murder” when discussing whether or not to replace a soul in a body
Drugs/Alcohol: protagonist takes Molly (club drug) at a party – this is not perceived as fun; it’s horrible for her
Other: none
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