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A review by chronicallybookish
Miss You Love You Hate You Bye by Abby Sher
2.0
2.5 stars
~
TW: Anorexia, bulimia, self harm. It’s a lot. Keep that in mind.
~
I’ve been Hank. But I’ve also been Zoe, to an extent. I’ve struggled with the things Zoe has, and I’ve struggled with watching my friend self destruct, and had to weigh the idea of losing the friendship or losing the person entirely.
So yeah. This book hit close to home. It was hard to read. And yet? I didn’t like it. Not because it hurt, but because it felt... fake-y. Manic and sensationalized and overdramatic.
Don’t get me wrong—in no way did this book glorify eating disorders. It just didn’t... it didn’t get real in a lot of ways. Maybe because it was from Hank’s point of view and not Zoe’s. I don’t know.
The letters felt real. They felt raw and honest and true. If a little overdramatic—but that’s is Zoe’s personality so it fit.
The storyline felt rushed and jumpy and manic. All the social media stuff felt weirdly fake and randomly pasted in there. It didn’t cohesively fit with the rest of the story? I felt like it made it seem like that was Zoe’s problem in a lot of ways. Social media addiction. And the storyline felt underdeveloped.
So, overall? It hit me hard, but i wouldn’t recommend it. I think there are many better eating disorder and self-harm reps although I haven’t found any that follow the best friend’s perspective.
~
TW: Anorexia, bulimia, self harm. It’s a lot. Keep that in mind.
~
I’ve been Hank. But I’ve also been Zoe, to an extent. I’ve struggled with the things Zoe has, and I’ve struggled with watching my friend self destruct, and had to weigh the idea of losing the friendship or losing the person entirely.
So yeah. This book hit close to home. It was hard to read. And yet? I didn’t like it. Not because it hurt, but because it felt... fake-y. Manic and sensationalized and overdramatic.
Don’t get me wrong—in no way did this book glorify eating disorders. It just didn’t... it didn’t get real in a lot of ways. Maybe because it was from Hank’s point of view and not Zoe’s. I don’t know.
The letters felt real. They felt raw and honest and true. If a little overdramatic—but that’s is Zoe’s personality so it fit.
The storyline felt rushed and jumpy and manic. All the social media stuff felt weirdly fake and randomly pasted in there. It didn’t cohesively fit with the rest of the story? I felt like it made it seem like that was Zoe’s problem in a lot of ways. Social media addiction. And the storyline felt underdeveloped.
So, overall? It hit me hard, but i wouldn’t recommend it. I think there are many better eating disorder and self-harm reps although I haven’t found any that follow the best friend’s perspective.