picketfences's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
liralen's review against another edition
3.0
Two things stand out to me here, neither of which is really the point of the book, soooo if you're looking for a proper review, please go somewhere else:
1) Hand's books have so much variation in topic and style—[b:angels|7488244|Unearthly (Unearthly, #1)|Cynthia Hand|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1324782984l/7488244._SY75_.jpg|9621771] and [b:snarky Janes|22840421|My Lady Jane (The Lady Janies, #1)|Cynthia Hand|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1444923765l/22840421._SY75_.jpg|42397220] and also contemporary? Huh. I've enjoyed all of them, more or less, but each for very different reasons.
2) I read this in part because I recently read [b:What I Carry|45697191|What I Carry|Jennifer Longo|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1561531383l/45697191._SY75_.jpg|48857622], another YA book with an adoption theme (my reading does tend to get thematic...), and in both cases the books are by authors with personal connections to adoption (or—What I Carry is more about foster care than about adoption, but there's some overlap). It's really interesting to me that both books go for lower-key material—in Longo's case, she talks explicitly about wanting to write a story that got away from stereotypes of abuse, etc.—and yet both stories tend towards a sort of idealised ending. This isn't specific to adoption stories (though it's very very very common in YA in general), but I guess it's interesting to me that the book's ending is so different from the way Hand describes her own experience with birth parent searches. Makes me wish (as ever) that YA as a whole were less inclined to go for the happy endings all tied up with bows and more inclined to leave some room for grey area.
3) Three things! Not two! (Still not the point of the book, though.) This is the [b:second book|17340625|A Promise Is for Keeping|Felicity Hayle|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1360300531l/17340625._SY75_.jpg|24076610] I've read recently in which a relatively uncommon blood type (AB...negative? I think?) is cited as a complicating factor in blood transfusions (other book) or transplants (this book)—and hey, consequently I learned something! I knew that AB individuals could receive not only AB blood but also A/B/O blood (as long as Rh-null individuals don't get Rh-pos blood, but I didn't know non-exact matches were also possible for transplants, or that the success rates were different. What a complicating factor, no? What do you do if you have (e.g.) two patients, one AB+ and one A-, and the AB+ patient is in more critical need of the lone (A-) lung currently available...but the A- patient has a better chance of success with that lung (and wouldn't be able to receive anything other than an A- lung, while the AB+ patient could theoretically receive a lung from any blood type)? Oh, I'm sure there are complicated formulae and so on, but it does feel like there's really no possibility of a 'right' answer.
1) Hand's books have so much variation in topic and style—[b:angels|7488244|Unearthly (Unearthly, #1)|Cynthia Hand|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1324782984l/7488244._SY75_.jpg|9621771] and [b:snarky Janes|22840421|My Lady Jane (The Lady Janies, #1)|Cynthia Hand|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1444923765l/22840421._SY75_.jpg|42397220] and also contemporary? Huh. I've enjoyed all of them, more or less, but each for very different reasons.
2) I read this in part because I recently read [b:What I Carry|45697191|What I Carry|Jennifer Longo|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1561531383l/45697191._SY75_.jpg|48857622], another YA book with an adoption theme (my reading does tend to get thematic...), and in both cases the books are by authors with personal connections to adoption (or—What I Carry is more about foster care than about adoption, but there's some overlap). It's really interesting to me that both books go for lower-key material—in Longo's case, she talks explicitly about wanting to write a story that got away from stereotypes of abuse, etc.—and yet both stories tend towards a sort of idealised ending. This isn't specific to adoption stories (though it's very very very common in YA in general), but I guess it's interesting to me that the book's ending is so different from the way Hand describes her own experience with birth parent searches. Makes me wish (as ever) that YA as a whole were less inclined to go for the happy endings all tied up with bows and more inclined to leave some room for grey area.
3) Three things! Not two! (Still not the point of the book, though.) This is the [b:second book|17340625|A Promise Is for Keeping|Felicity Hayle|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1360300531l/17340625._SY75_.jpg|24076610] I've read recently in which a relatively uncommon blood type (AB...negative? I think?) is cited as a complicating factor in blood transfusions (other book) or transplants (this book)—and hey, consequently I learned something! I knew that AB individuals could receive not only AB blood but also A/B/O blood (as long as Rh-null individuals don't get Rh-pos blood, but I didn't know non-exact matches were also possible for transplants, or that the success rates were different. What a complicating factor, no? What do you do if you have (e.g.) two patients, one AB+ and one A-, and the AB+ patient is in more critical need of the lone (A-) lung currently available...but the A- patient has a better chance of success with that lung (and wouldn't be able to receive anything other than an A- lung, while the AB+ patient could theoretically receive a lung from any blood type)? Oh, I'm sure there are complicated formulae and so on, but it does feel like there's really no possibility of a 'right' answer.
ellieafterall's review against another edition
4.0
”I believe in the future now, and whatever it holds. Even if you don’t know me, even if you can’t see the ties that bind us, I’ll be there, too. I’m under the same sun as you, the same moon, walking the same earth, and I’ll be thinking about you every day, every step. I’ll be hoping for the best. I’ll be loving you.”
madelinefmcguire's review against another edition
5.0
As Cassandra turns 18 she gains the ability to access the letters her birth mother wrote for her while she was pregnant. Cass doesn't know anything about her biological mother and it never seemed to really matter, her parents are the two wonderful people who raised her. Cass has questions about her birth mother, but she's hesitant to look into her for fear of hurting her parents. But as her mother waits for a new heart she implores Cass to find her answers if that's what she really wants. Cass' mother herself wants to meet her bio-mom to thank her. As Cass digs into her birth mother she tries to decide on college plans and figure out her next steps. When she winds up with her birth-mother's letters she hopes they will shed some light and help guide her in the right direction.
This book is so good. It's so well written, the letters S writes to un-born Cass are fantastic and add to the story in a very unique way. Cass' own journey is something to behold, a dying-mother, college plans and the latest play at her school. A great book for teens who like character journeys, multi-generalization books, and the forever wonderful coming of age story. I really enjoyed it and I'd recommend it to anyone thinking of reading it.
This book is so good. It's so well written, the letters S writes to un-born Cass are fantastic and add to the story in a very unique way. Cass' own journey is something to behold, a dying-mother, college plans and the latest play at her school. A great book for teens who like character journeys, multi-generalization books, and the forever wonderful coming of age story. I really enjoyed it and I'd recommend it to anyone thinking of reading it.
lyndsayreads's review against another edition
2.0
Okay so unfortunately, I really did not like this. I wanted to like it so bad because the reviews are good and the plot sounded really promising. But this just did not work for me on a lot of levels. Even though I was listening to the audiobook and the audiobook isn't very long, it took me 2 weeks to read this. I almost DNFed about 6 times but I kept pushing through thinking it'd get better and it just never did.
So if you don't know, this is about a girl named Cassandra who was adopted when she was 6 weeks old and has never been concerned about her birth family. But she turns 18 and her mom is in the hospital and so she starts to get curious about where she came from. Additionally, this book is told from the perspective of Cassandra's birth mom who is writing letters to her unborn child in hopes that the baby will read them one day.
In my opinion, the best and strongest part of the book was the flashbacks to Cass's birth mom writing the letters. I found her story far more compelling than Cass's story to be honest. The letters were few and far between in the book but I think I kept reading because I wanted to know how her story ended. As far as Cass, I found her to be very annoying and kinda bratty. She's going through a lot with her mom's illness and all that. But she was kind of the worst to her friends and her family. And I didn't find her story interesting at all.
Cass is really into musical theater. She's in her school's musical and there is a lot of talk about musicals in general. And i just didn't really care about any of that stuff. Every time we had to hear more about the musical or theater in general, I just wanted to skip it. I'm not a fan of books with a lot of pop culture references. And this book was full of pop culture references that I didn't even understand. So it was just blah.
Also, on a technical level, I really didn't like the writing style at all. I got so bogged down with all the details of every little thing. Also, this book says the word Idaho way too many times. I get it obviously, the book is set in Idaho and there's going to be a lot of talk about Idaho. But I don't even know that much about Idaho. It's one of those states you never really hear about, kinda like Arkansas, and I just didn't care? There were lots of other little technical things too. I thought the characters came off as childish, the plot was not compelling in the slightest, and the book itself was just boring.
I wanted to like this so bad. I thought it was going to be a really emotional, hard-hitting YA novel. But for most of the book, I didn't care about what was going on and I definitely didn't find it all that emotional. I can't speak to how the adoption representation comes off because I'm not adopted. But I'd also be willing to bet that each adoption situation is different so that doesn't make one any less authentic than another. But even that wasn't that interesting to me. Unfortunately, this is the second book by Cynthia Hand that I've read and not really been impressed with, so I might be done with her as an author. But I know this book got mostly positive reviews so I'm pretty sure I'm the outlier here. Honestly, I'd recommend reading it because chances are, you'll feel different about it than I did.
But this is definitely not a new fave and I'll be unhauling as soon as I can.
So if you don't know, this is about a girl named Cassandra who was adopted when she was 6 weeks old and has never been concerned about her birth family. But she turns 18 and her mom is in the hospital and so she starts to get curious about where she came from. Additionally, this book is told from the perspective of Cassandra's birth mom who is writing letters to her unborn child in hopes that the baby will read them one day.
In my opinion, the best and strongest part of the book was the flashbacks to Cass's birth mom writing the letters. I found her story far more compelling than Cass's story to be honest. The letters were few and far between in the book but I think I kept reading because I wanted to know how her story ended. As far as Cass, I found her to be very annoying and kinda bratty. She's going through a lot with her mom's illness and all that. But she was kind of the worst to her friends and her family. And I didn't find her story interesting at all.
Cass is really into musical theater. She's in her school's musical and there is a lot of talk about musicals in general. And i just didn't really care about any of that stuff. Every time we had to hear more about the musical or theater in general, I just wanted to skip it. I'm not a fan of books with a lot of pop culture references. And this book was full of pop culture references that I didn't even understand. So it was just blah.
Also, on a technical level, I really didn't like the writing style at all. I got so bogged down with all the details of every little thing. Also, this book says the word Idaho way too many times. I get it obviously, the book is set in Idaho and there's going to be a lot of talk about Idaho. But I don't even know that much about Idaho. It's one of those states you never really hear about, kinda like Arkansas, and I just didn't care? There were lots of other little technical things too. I thought the characters came off as childish, the plot was not compelling in the slightest, and the book itself was just boring.
I wanted to like this so bad. I thought it was going to be a really emotional, hard-hitting YA novel. But for most of the book, I didn't care about what was going on and I definitely didn't find it all that emotional. I can't speak to how the adoption representation comes off because I'm not adopted. But I'd also be willing to bet that each adoption situation is different so that doesn't make one any less authentic than another. But even that wasn't that interesting to me. Unfortunately, this is the second book by Cynthia Hand that I've read and not really been impressed with, so I might be done with her as an author. But I know this book got mostly positive reviews so I'm pretty sure I'm the outlier here. Honestly, I'd recommend reading it because chances are, you'll feel different about it than I did.
But this is definitely not a new fave and I'll be unhauling as soon as I can.
docdubbs's review against another edition
5.0
I read this book in 2 nights. That might say it all, but this was truly a pleasure. A rollercoaster of emotions, especially as a mother. I read this for our schools summer reading book club and I’m so glad I did. Highly recommend!
raineedayze's review against another edition
5.0
I sobbed through this book and laughed through this book. It was heartwrenching, heartwarming, and beautiful.
pixie_hallows's review against another edition
5.0
This book! It did not disappoint.
It’s a book about theatre kids, about growing up, about choosing a college, about awkward teenage moments, about adoption, about what life looks like when you are facing the death of a loved one, about a teenager trying to give her unborn child her best life.
The story alternates between an 18 year old in present day and letters from her teenage birth mom.
The ending is perfection which I both loved and hated. My eyes were not dry. How’s that for cryptic?
It’s a book about theatre kids, about growing up, about choosing a college, about awkward teenage moments, about adoption, about what life looks like when you are facing the death of a loved one, about a teenager trying to give her unborn child her best life.
The story alternates between an 18 year old in present day and letters from her teenage birth mom.
The ending is perfection which I both loved and hated. My eyes were not dry. How’s that for cryptic?
nissahh's review against another edition
5.0
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Dear X,
When it comes to books I know that's going to be emotional and possibly make me cry I try to steer away from them because I really don't want to cry my heart out at 12:30 in the morning and yet that's what I did. I had everything planned out, I sectioned it off every 5 chapters or so to read every day because I was in a reading slump last month (October). I didn't stick to that at all, at the end of every section made me want to know what's going to happen next.
The first time I cried, I considered it stupid because nothing really sad happened or was said. It was the first letter 'S' wrote Cass and the ending made me get teary eyed a little. When you read it you would think I'm crazy for getting emotional over that.
After the first letter from 'S' to her Cass we met Cass celebrating her 18th birthday with her best friend Nyla at a Mexican Restaurant. After which she celebrates with her dad and her family at home where she had an embarrassing conversation with Nyla when she thought it was just them two. Then she celebrates with her mom who's in the hospital after a heart attack.
After coming home from the hospital she goes to room and thinks about her birth mother like she always done with every birthday and decided to actually pursue in finding out who she is this time.
We learn how Cass and Nyla are theater nerds; we get to see them audition and get ready to perform Into The Woods, which is Mama Cat's favorite play. There's a new boy in school who tries out for Prince Charming and is very good at singing. I do have to admit I was nervous that Sebastian (Bastian) would cause Nyla and Cass to have a rift in their friendship.
Since it's their senior year, Nyla and Cass, with Cass father, tour all of Idaho's colleges, even though he wants Cass to attend Boise State. She finds the perfect college for which is not Boise State.
Cass and Nyla competes in Idaho's National Drama Competition and we find out Mama Cat has 6 weeks to live. We see Cass struggling with the thought of losing her mother and how's that affecting her life outside of her family and her relationship with Nyla.
While we getting to know Cass, we are also learning more about 'S' and how she ended up deciding to put Cass up for adoption and how everything was in Booth and how she met Cass's father. Reading from 'S' letters made me the most emotional, we see her go from not wanting to write this letter to Cass, to seeing how she's truly feeling about Cass by the end. Her last two letters really did a number on me and just thinking about them is making me tear up a little.
Cass relationship with her parents were so cute and what I picture a healthy relationship with parents and child should be. They are supportive of Cass wanting to know more about her birth mother and possibly meeting her.
Her father is a 5th grade teacher and her mother was a cake baker before she was hospitalized because of heart attack. You can see how much they love and care for each other and that was really cute to see. There's a scene in this book that would be considered a spoiler and it was cute and funny.
Cass and Nyla was also cute (I use cute a lot apparently). They're both adopted and bonded even more over that. You can see how much each other means so much to them. They have traditions they do when before every audition and that was sweet. There's a part in this book that really shocked me and I didn't expect that from Cass because she knows how Nyla feels about that and yet she says it anyways. I understand being upset and overwhelmed with everything going on with her mother, but still.
Nyla is African American. She was born in Liberia and was adopted when she was three and she's a Mormon with three other siblings. The fact that you learn a lot about Nyla tells you a lot about the author's writing. I never learned so much about a side character before, but I guess it had to do with her and Cass being so close.
Because I don't believe sexuality is a spoiler, I would like to say that Sebastian is gay. You get a small glimpse of his family life from when he talks with Cass about going to college.
The ending was beautiful and had me wishing it was a little longer, but I understand. Sometimes you don't need to know more about something that is private even though it's a fiction. I imagine it must've been hard for the author, who's also adopted to write this beautiful book, and to have it go on more would be selfish.
This book was so beautifully written that made me want to immediately read again once I was finished. It has happy endings and new beginnings that was just *chef's kiss*. Get your tissues ready and be prepare to cry throughout this book. It's definitely one of my favorite books of all time and year.
Dear X,
When it comes to books I know that's going to be emotional and possibly make me cry I try to steer away from them because I really don't want to cry my heart out at 12:30 in the morning and yet that's what I did. I had everything planned out, I sectioned it off every 5 chapters or so to read every day because I was in a reading slump last month (October). I didn't stick to that at all, at the end of every section made me want to know what's going to happen next.
The first time I cried, I considered it stupid because nothing really sad happened or was said. It was the first letter 'S' wrote Cass and the ending made me get teary eyed a little. When you read it you would think I'm crazy for getting emotional over that.
After the first letter from 'S' to her Cass we met Cass celebrating her 18th birthday with her best friend Nyla at a Mexican Restaurant. After which she celebrates with her dad and her family at home where she had an embarrassing conversation with Nyla when she thought it was just them two. Then she celebrates with her mom who's in the hospital after a heart attack.
After coming home from the hospital she goes to room and thinks about her birth mother like she always done with every birthday and decided to actually pursue in finding out who she is this time.
We learn how Cass and Nyla are theater nerds; we get to see them audition and get ready to perform Into The Woods, which is Mama Cat's favorite play. There's a new boy in school who tries out for Prince Charming and is very good at singing. I do have to admit I was nervous that Sebastian (Bastian) would cause Nyla and Cass to have a rift in their friendship.
Since it's their senior year, Nyla and Cass, with Cass father, tour all of Idaho's colleges, even though he wants Cass to attend Boise State. She finds the perfect college for which is not Boise State.
Cass and Nyla competes in Idaho's National Drama Competition and we find out Mama Cat has 6 weeks to live. We see Cass struggling with the thought of losing her mother and how's that affecting her life outside of her family and her relationship with Nyla.
While we getting to know Cass, we are also learning more about 'S' and how she ended up deciding to put Cass up for adoption and how everything was in Booth and how she met Cass's father. Reading from 'S' letters made me the most emotional, we see her go from not wanting to write this letter to Cass, to seeing how she's truly feeling about Cass by the end. Her last two letters really did a number on me and just thinking about them is making me tear up a little.
Cass relationship with her parents were so cute and what I picture a healthy relationship with parents and child should be. They are supportive of Cass wanting to know more about her birth mother and possibly meeting her.
Her father is a 5th grade teacher and her mother was a cake baker before she was hospitalized because of heart attack. You can see how much they love and care for each other and that was really cute to see. There's a scene in this book that would be considered a spoiler and it was cute and funny.
Cass and Nyla was also cute (I use cute a lot apparently). They're both adopted and bonded even more over that. You can see how much each other means so much to them. They have traditions they do when before every audition and that was sweet. There's a part in this book that really shocked me and I didn't expect that from Cass because she knows how Nyla feels about that and yet she says it anyways. I understand being upset and overwhelmed with everything going on with her mother, but still.
Nyla is African American. She was born in Liberia and was adopted when she was three and she's a Mormon with three other siblings. The fact that you learn a lot about Nyla tells you a lot about the author's writing. I never learned so much about a side character before, but I guess it had to do with her and Cass being so close.
Because I don't believe sexuality is a spoiler, I would like to say that Sebastian is gay. You get a small glimpse of his family life from when he talks with Cass about going to college.
The ending was beautiful and had me wishing it was a little longer, but I understand. Sometimes you don't need to know more about something that is private even though it's a fiction. I imagine it must've been hard for the author, who's also adopted to write this beautiful book, and to have it go on more would be selfish.
This book was so beautifully written that made me want to immediately read again once I was finished. It has happy endings and new beginnings that was just *chef's kiss*. Get your tissues ready and be prepare to cry throughout this book. It's definitely one of my favorite books of all time and year.
lifeofaliterarynerd's review against another edition
4.0
"The point is, I hope you get it - the why of the whole thing. I hope you have a good life- a boring, no-drama, no-real-problems kind of life.I have such a weakness for family stories. I will without fail, pick up a book if family is a central focus, and I can say The How & the Why is a great addition to the emotional family-centric stories that I love. The story is told in 2 perspectives: 18 year old Cass as she’s getting ready for all that comes with senior year , and letters from 16 year old, ‘S’ who gave her up 18 years ago.
Good luck, X. I wish you the best."
I really liked Cass as a character. She’s honest and flawed and it’s so easy to feel for her through all of her struggles. Her friendships with Nyla and Bastian are wonderful. Seeing from her birth mother’s perspective was really nice, and woven into the story seamlessly. (S can really set a scene). My biggest complaint with the story was that I didn’t really buy Cassa and Nyla’s acting prowess, so some of that stuff fell falt for me. Otherwise, The How & the Why is an emotionally raw story about family and identity that will tug on your heartstrings.
Sidenote: I would LOVE a novella that explores what happens after the epiloge. I think the story ends in the right place narratively. But as soon as I finished the book, I put it down in my lap and said "NO." so I would really love to see "the next" of THe How & the Why.
I received a copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review