Summary:
This book is about the main character, Lennie's, struggle dealing with he sudden death of her sister, Bailey aka Bails. Lennie battles between finding comfort from two opposing forces. She is smitten by Joe, the new, upbeat, energetic boy who never even knew her sister, but she is also, mournfully bonding with Toby, her sisters boyfriend, who was going to marry and have a baby with Bails. This book is set for high school teenage years and dives into topics such as love, loneliness, heartache, and anguish. Part of the storyline also addresses Lennie's long lost emotional search for her mother, who has not been in her life for almost 16 years.
Review:
The main character is a high school teenager so I probably should have anticipated that the story was going to read a little bit "young" for my liking, but that being said, one of the best things I enjoyed about this book was the desperation in the writing. There is just so much passion and agony throughout the entire book, that it was hard not to feel your own heart aching along side with the main character. It reminded me of when I was young, and no matter what I was feeling, I felt everything right down to my core.
Overall the storyline was a little anticipated, but I thought the writing itself was excellent, and did a really good job of bringing me back to a more innocent, less tainted, mindset. I would recommend this book for mid to late teen readers, more mature readers that are looking for an easy read, but with extremely passionate touches, or for anyone who has dealt or is dealing with loss.
Quotable moments:
"I've been coming here everyday at lunch, hiding out until the bell rings, whitling words into the branches with my pen, allowing my heart to break in private. I can't hide a thing---everyone in school sees clear to my bones." pg. 39
"When I get to the path, I take off, trying to outrun the heartache that is chasing me down." pg. 92
"...---she wants to dance wild and free all around the thumping room, but unfortunately, that girl's in me, not me." pg. 98
"I hurry inside, worrying about what Toby said to me and what I didn't say to Joe, as the rain washes all those beautiful kisses off of me." pg. 150
"I'm going to love it if you take off all your clothes there, I promise, or at least some of them, maybe even just a sock." pg. 161
"There are people everywhere standing in line at the movies, buying curtains, walking dogs, while inside, their hearts are ripping to shreds." pg. 168
"You can tell your story any way you damn well please.
It's your solo." pg. 185
"How to get used to being without a boy who turns you into brightness?" pg. 217
"Its as if everything around us stops to see what's going to happen next---the trees lean in, birds hover, flowers hold their petals still." pg. 228
"I wanted to punch him in the face,
but instead I started to cry
in a drowning kind of way." pg. 238
"Walking home, I realize it's the first time since Bailey died that I've written words for someone to read." pg. 258
"Love is contagious, everyone knows that, Lennie." pg. 273
Hope you enjoy!
-Linds
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