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A review by accidentalra
Things Don't Break on Their Own by Sarah Easter Collins
4.0
Despite the misleading blurb description, I quite enjoyed Things Don't Break on Their Own. (Seriously—who writes those things? And is it s.o.p. to write them after only skimming the first two chapters? Dear Blurb Writers: Do better.)
Told from three perspectives, the novel primarily explores how Willa simultaneously navigates the abrupt disappearance of her younger sister, Laika, and the ongoing trauma of domestic abuse. Through both the primary and secondary characters, the author examines themes of memory and resilience and invites the reader to consider the kaleidoscopic concept of brokenness—
That things don't just break. That broken things can be fixed. That they can be made stronger and more beautiful through careful reconstruction. But also that not everything is worth fixing.
My biggest criticism of the novel is that, despite the twenty-year time span, there doesn't seem to be a substantial amount of character growth for the two sisters—or rather, their maturity seems to almost an all-at-once phenomenon—and the potential for an 'interrupted development' theme is never fully explored. Nevertheless, the explicit inclusion of Kintsugi (and its opposite) and the discussion of memory at the blurb-hyped dinner party makes this an excellent book for discussion, even for readers who might normally struggle to identify themes.
Overall, Things Don't Break on Their Own is a thoughtful, character-driven debut with much to offer. I look forward to more from this author.
[I received an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.]
Told from three perspectives, the novel primarily explores how Willa simultaneously navigates the abrupt disappearance of her younger sister, Laika, and the ongoing trauma of domestic abuse. Through both the primary and secondary characters, the author examines themes of memory and resilience and invites the reader to consider the kaleidoscopic concept of brokenness—
That things don't just break. That broken things can be fixed. That they can be made stronger and more beautiful through careful reconstruction. But also that not everything is worth fixing.
My biggest criticism of the novel is that, despite the twenty-year time span, there doesn't seem to be a substantial amount of character growth for the two sisters—or rather, their maturity seems to almost an all-at-once phenomenon—and the potential for an 'interrupted development' theme is never fully explored. Nevertheless, the explicit inclusion of Kintsugi (and its opposite) and the discussion of memory at the blurb-hyped dinner party makes this an excellent book for discussion, even for readers who might normally struggle to identify themes.
Overall, Things Don't Break on Their Own is a thoughtful, character-driven debut with much to offer. I look forward to more from this author.
[I received an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.]