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A review by lorilaws
Saving June by Hannah Harrington
5.0
This book was great you guys. Great. It really surprised me. I was expecting to like it because I have heard lots of other bloggers raving about it. I was expecting it to be heartbreaking and it wasn't. At all. Sure, it was sad. The situation that Harper is in makes it almost impossible to not be a little sad, but it was also kind of...fun.
You maybe have to suspend disbelief just a tiny bit while reading this. Harper's older sister commits suicide but Harper doesn't cry. She isn't wallowing in grief. She decides to sneak off on a road trip with her best friend, a mysterious boy, and her sister's ashes. That could seem a little unbelievable, right? But it worked for this book. I mean everyone grieves in different ways and Harper's sole purpose was to get June to the place she always wanted to go.
Harper was utterly fantastic! She is kind of tough as nails and doesn't take any crap from anyone. She was the kind of girl I have always wanted to be. It goes without saying that she was incredibly strong in the face of this horrifying situation. She was also very very loyal. I often don't like friendships in books (is that strange). It seems like best friends are usually thrown in stories to get in the way of relationships, or to just be annoying. But Laney and Harper were real. No drama just a deep and honest friendship.
Jake. At first Jake was a little cliched. A cute mysterious boy with a attitude problem? Yeah, that's been done a few times. But once they set out on their road trip he develops so much as a character. He's infuriating to Harper but he also becomes her rock. Their relationship quietly becomes something more. The whole dynamic between the two of them unfolds beautifully. It might be the most realistic relationship I have read in a long, long time. It doesn't hurt that there were these little scenes that had me completely swooning.
The music! I love books that have a strong musical theme and this one definitely did. Plus, it was music that grew listening to and that I still love today! The way Harrington draws a parallel between grief and music is amazing. Music has always been very much about my own feelings, the way certain songs can say what I can't and do it perfectly. Saving June puts a lot of significance on music and that was one of the things I loved much about it.
One other thing, this book was almost like looking in the mirror for me. I have an older sister who has always struggled with depression. It's been a big part of my life since I was 10 or so and lately it's been worse. So Saving June resonated so well with me. Although my situation isn't like Harper's, I still had a very strong connection to her.
So uh yeah....I think you should read this. As you can see I really loved it. If you are worried about it being sad, don't be. I only got a little teary at one point. I really highly, highly recommend this book. Read it!
You maybe have to suspend disbelief just a tiny bit while reading this. Harper's older sister commits suicide but Harper doesn't cry. She isn't wallowing in grief. She decides to sneak off on a road trip with her best friend, a mysterious boy, and her sister's ashes. That could seem a little unbelievable, right? But it worked for this book. I mean everyone grieves in different ways and Harper's sole purpose was to get June to the place she always wanted to go.
Harper was utterly fantastic! She is kind of tough as nails and doesn't take any crap from anyone. She was the kind of girl I have always wanted to be. It goes without saying that she was incredibly strong in the face of this horrifying situation. She was also very very loyal. I often don't like friendships in books (is that strange). It seems like best friends are usually thrown in stories to get in the way of relationships, or to just be annoying. But Laney and Harper were real. No drama just a deep and honest friendship.
Jake. At first Jake was a little cliched. A cute mysterious boy with a attitude problem? Yeah, that's been done a few times. But once they set out on their road trip he develops so much as a character. He's infuriating to Harper but he also becomes her rock. Their relationship quietly becomes something more. The whole dynamic between the two of them unfolds beautifully. It might be the most realistic relationship I have read in a long, long time. It doesn't hurt that there were these little scenes that had me completely swooning.
The music! I love books that have a strong musical theme and this one definitely did. Plus, it was music that grew listening to and that I still love today! The way Harrington draws a parallel between grief and music is amazing. Music has always been very much about my own feelings, the way certain songs can say what I can't and do it perfectly. Saving June puts a lot of significance on music and that was one of the things I loved much about it.
One other thing, this book was almost like looking in the mirror for me. I have an older sister who has always struggled with depression. It's been a big part of my life since I was 10 or so and lately it's been worse. So Saving June resonated so well with me. Although my situation isn't like Harper's, I still had a very strong connection to her.
So uh yeah....I think you should read this. As you can see I really loved it. If you are worried about it being sad, don't be. I only got a little teary at one point. I really highly, highly recommend this book. Read it!