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A review by velsbooknook
Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
4.25
The story follows William Waters who grew up in a family that was utterly broken by the death of his older sister. William is finding a new family after meeting his college love Julia. Everything seems too good to be true and William is finally feeling like he found a place he belongs to but his past is still haunting him.
I read Dear Edward back in 2021 and it actually was my favourite read of the year and so I was very excited to read the latest book by the author. Napolitano's writing style is so beautiful and captivating it was lovely to follow the path of those characters. The story is told by four POVs, William, Julia, her sister Sylvie and Alice. I went in blind and I was not sure where this story was going to for a very long time but I just enjoyed the ride. The pacing is rather slow and this book is heavily character driven. I loved the dynamic of the sisters the most and I often found myself in the character of Sylvie.
It follows William and the Padavano sisters over the course of several decades and the story is filled with tragedy, hope, forgiveness, healing, family and so much more.
The story is loosely based on Mary Alcott's Little Women, but I have not read it yet so I can't say much about it. If you read both books I would love to hear your thoughts!
Overall a very enjoyable read, with lots of ups and downs and lessons about what really is important in life.
I read Dear Edward back in 2021 and it actually was my favourite read of the year and so I was very excited to read the latest book by the author. Napolitano's writing style is so beautiful and captivating it was lovely to follow the path of those characters. The story is told by four POVs, William, Julia, her sister Sylvie and Alice. I went in blind and I was not sure where this story was going to for a very long time but I just enjoyed the ride. The pacing is rather slow and this book is heavily character driven. I loved the dynamic of the sisters the most and I often found myself in the character of Sylvie.
It follows William and the Padavano sisters over the course of several decades and the story is filled with tragedy, hope, forgiveness, healing, family and so much more.
The story is loosely based on Mary Alcott's Little Women, but I have not read it yet so I can't say much about it. If you read both books I would love to hear your thoughts!
Overall a very enjoyable read, with lots of ups and downs and lessons about what really is important in life.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Child death, Death, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, and Suicide attempt