This book is so good! I just love it. Grief seems so real and you really end up feeling sorry that you never got to know Bailey before she died. Maybe in the end things wrap a little too neatly (I think Joe is a little too understanding), but whatever, the characters needed it so who am I to deprive them of happiness? ( )

Lennie Walker tiene diecisiete años y, tras la repentina muerte de su adorada hermana mayor, se siente irremediablemente atraída por el tranquilo y seductor Toby, el novio de siempre de su hermana, con quien comparte el dolor... Pero cuando el chico nuevo, Joe, vital y con muchos recursos, empieza a rondarla y a dejarle misteriosas notas por todas partes, ella se da cuenta de que ambos le ofrecen algo que ahora necesita imperiosamente. ¿Cómo combatir el dolor por la pérdida? ¿Cómo encarar un nuevo amor? ¿Es posible conciliar ambos? Y los errores, ¿qué hacemos con ellos?

California. First a book about a road-trip there, now a book set in California. Premonitions abound. :)
Green eyes!
And don't forget the dictionary!

This is what grief tastes like, this is also a glimpse of hope and new beginnings. Boundless aching wonder.

Wonderful. Powerful. Tear-my-soul-out. Break-and-mend-my-heart.
Books and music and forever.

Gods. I want to weep and laugh.
Heartbreaking wonder. ( )

17-year-old "Lennie" (short for Lennon, which I've decided I love as a first name) is still reeling from the recent unexpected death of her older sister, Bailey. As she struggles to come to terms with this, she finds that nothing is the same anymore: she's grown out of touch with her best friend, she's lost her ability & desire to play the clarinet, and she no longer wants to spend time with her grandmother or uncle, who she lives with. To complicate matters, there's a new guy at school, Joe, who everyone seems to be falling for, and Lennie is surprised to find that he is expressing interest in her. But hold on -- there's also Toby, Bailey's boyfriend, who is also mourning and is all of a sudden looking at Lennie in a different way. With all these different emotions fighting to break through, Lennie is understandably overwhelmed. Can she experience love while at the same time respectfully honor the memory of her sister?

This kind of sounds like a cliche'd young adult story, and maybe it is in some ways, but I really enjoyed it. I found that every time I put the book down, I wanted to pick it back up again. It's an emotional story, but also a quick & light read, with just enough quirkiness and humor to balance everything out. There were times I wanted to shake Lennie, but at other times I just wanted to give her a big hug. This was a great palette cleanser between some other heavier books I've read lately, and I was sad to see it end.

On a side note, a film adaptation was just released about a week ago on AppleTV. I watched that immediately after finishing the book and I wish I hadn't. It's hard to explain, but it ruined the magic of this book for me. It's as if they tried too hard to incorporate a certain amount of magical realism into the production, making the humor bits corny & unbelievable. It just didn't work for me. My advice is to stick with the book. ( )

This is such a lovely book. I felt Lennie's grief like an ache in my heart. Her worry about grieving the "wrong way" made me want to hug her. (Tip: There is no "right way" to grieve.) The selfishness that Gram calls her on is a very typical teenage thing, I think.

Now, for the boys. I loved Joe, of course. Who wouldn't? Lennie's descriptions of him, and his brothers (batting eyelashes, smiles that light up the world, etc.) were so smitten and cute. I didn't love Toby. I tolerated him by the end, because I finally sort of understood why he'd done what he did. I didn't forgive him (or Lennie), but it was at least a bit more tolerable, and I was very happy with the way things ended up for them. ( )