Shattered by the death of her sister May, Laurel is unable to discuss her grief. That is, until she received an assignment asking her to write a letter to a dead person. Laurel writes dozens of letters to deceased stars, many of whom lived troubled lives. Through this letter writing, Laurel finds an outlet to process her emotions concerning her sister’s tragic death as well as the strength to finally open up to those close to her.

I loved the concept of an epistolary novel written to the dead, and Love Letters to the Dead was beautifully written and moving. There are fantastic moments in this novel; I especially loved Hannah and Natalie’s side story (they should have a book of their own). However, I had a few issues which detracted from the believability of the story. First, Laurel often writes biographical details within her letters about the lives of the people to whom she’s writing, but this exposition does not make sense within the context of the letter (Laurel wouldn’t need to tell River Phoenix about his own childhood, for example). This feels inauthentic and pulled me out of the narrative each time it happened; it comes off as the author trying to educate the reader about the life of the recipient.

Additionally, the former stars to which Laurel writes follow no discernable thread; I felt that the narrative would be stronger if each had a self-destructive streak, or died under mysterious circumstances so that the reader could believe that Laurel had chosen these celebrities due to their similarity to May. Why Laurel would reach out to some of these celebrities truly baffles the mind: many would resonate with modern teens (Kurt Cobain, Amy Winehouse, Heath Ledger), but many others are incredibly dated, and it defied belief that a teen would choose to write to any of them (Judy Garland, Elizabeth Bishop, John Keats, the voice of Mr. Ed). Descriptions of fashion are similarly old-fashioned (there’s a scene that revolves around Laurel’s lavender-colored velvet shirt, not a popular look at any point in the last decade). I was sure that the story took place in the mid 90’s until Amy Winehouse was mentioned.

Due to these issues, I worry that teens may have a difficult time identifying with Laurel. This is a shame because Laurel’s story, once she finally opens up, is interesting and relatable. Love Letters to the Dead may not be a book that all teens will understand, but teens undergoing loss in their own lives would benefit from this story of how Laurel handles, and eventually overcomes, her grief.

I received this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group and to NetGalley for the advance copy!

“What I told you about saving people isn't true. You might think it is because you might want someone else to save you, or you might want to save someone so badly. But no one else can save you, not really. Not from yourself. You fall asleep in the foothills, and the wolf comes down from the mountains. And you hope someone will wake you up. Or chase it off. Or shoot it dead. But when you realize that the wolf is inside you, that's when you know. You can't run from it. And no one who loves you can kill the wolf because it's part of you. They see your face on it. And they won't fire the shot."

“You think you know someone, but that person always changes, and you keep changing, too. I understood it suddenly, how that’s what being alive means. Our own invisible plates shifting inside of our bodies, beginning to align with the people we are going to become.”

“And maybe what growing up really means is knowing that you don't have to be just a character, going whichever way the story says. It's knowing you could be the author instead.”

“You can be noble and brave and beautiful and still find yourself falling.”

“I know I wrote letters to people with no address on this earth, I know that you are dead. But I hear you. I hear all of you. We were here. Our lives matter.”

Ein Buch für alle, die folgendes gern mögen:

Tragische Persönlichkeiten, die meistens zu früh gestorben sind. Allen voran Kurt Cobain, River Phoenix, Judy Garland und Amy Whinehouse.

Romane in Briefform. Das ganze Buch besteht nur aus Briefen, die Laurel an berühmte Verstorbene schreibt.

Stille Geschichten mit vielen Grübeleien. Davon gibt es wirklich einige in diesem Buch. Wenn man zu viele der Briefe hintereinander liest, kann das schon mal ermüdend sein. Schön ist, dass der Leser seine eigenen Schlüsse ziehen kann und nicht alles vorgedacht bekommt.

Romane, die in der Gegenwart spielen, sich aber wie aus den Neunzigern anfühlen. Das lag wohl vor allem an den toten Berühmtheiten und Laurels Interesse an ihnen (jetzt mal ehrlich, wieviele Jugendliche des Lady Gaga Zeitalters interessieren sich schon für Janis Joplin oder River Phoenix?).

Sanfte Liebesgeschichten, in denen es mehr um das Füreinanderdasein als um wallende Lustgefühle geht. Hiermit hat das Buch mich definitiv berührt.

Tote Schwestern und damit verbundene Geheimniskrämereien. Mir persönlich hängt dieses Thema inzwischen zum Hals raus. Die große Schwester ist tot, aber mit ihrem Abgang war irgendwas nicht ganz koscher. Nur was? Die Aufklärung wird hier ziemlich lange hinausgezögert.

Glückliche Enden. In dem Buch passieren ein paar schlimme Sachen, aber als im letzten Viertel die Geheimnisse aufgeklärt werden, ist plötzlich alles ganz einfach. Als müsste man nur darüber reden und Probleme würden sich in Luft auflösen. Klar, das ist ein wichtiger Schritt, aber hier gingen mir die positiven Veränderungen eindeutig zu schnell von der Hand.

Alles in allem ein leises, nachdenkliches Buch, das ich mehr mögen wollte als ich am Ende konnte.

This review originally appeared here: http://wanderlustywriter.wordpress.com/2014/09/23/love-letters-to-the-dead/

I loved this book.

This book is often compared to The Perks of Being a Wallflower (which is one of my top 10 books of all time). In fact, Stephen Chobsky was Ava Dellaira’s mentor (how did she manage that? Can he mentor me too?)

The similarities are pretty striking: shy teenager (though in Dellaira’s case it’s a girl) writing letters to a person/people who don’t or can’t write back, spilling out her heart in poetic prose as she navigates her first year of high school. Like in Perks, she’s suffered a loss recently, and there are also hints to something that happened to her that you don’t find out about until later.

I’m a sucker for lost teenage protagonists. Maybe it’s because the first time I read The Catcher in the Rye it was the first time I felt like someone understood me. Maybe it’s because I will never forget what it’s like to be an angsty teenager. Maybe it’s because I’ve grown into an angsty adult. Whatever it is, books like this tug at me.

Epistolary novels are tricky what with the balance between show and tell (I just tried writing one myself, and gave up). But Ava Dellaira makes it work. Some of the exposition is a little awkward–she’s writing to these famous people and telling them how they lived and how they died, like they wouldn’t already know. But her beautiful prose overshadows any flaws.

Another thing: as much as I love angsty teenager books, I find it a little overdone that each teenager has to have had something horrible happen to them in the past to make them the way they are. You can be an angsty teenager without having a tragic past. I understand tragedy makes you sympathize with the character faster, but I’d like to see a book like this where the lost protagonist has basically had a normal life. (Maybe that’s why I’m writing one.)

Regardless, you should read this book. Here’s why:

1. Ava Dellaira is a beautiful writer:

“And if you wear leather pants, and have a beautiful body, and drink lots of expensive wine, and if your voice sounds like the edge you strike a match on, then these things are blocks that you have given them to build the person they want.”

2. She understands exactly why I became a writer:

“So maybe when we can say things, when we can write the words, when we can express how it feels, we aren’t so helpless.”

3. She has also taken the sum of my shy adolescent self, and summed it up into one sentence:

“I want people to know me, but if anyone could look inside of me, if they saw that everything I feel is not what it’s supposed to be, I don’t know what would happen.”

Go read this book!

1.5

"Talvez ao contar as histórias, por pior que sejam, não deixemos de pertencer a elas. Elas se tornam nossas. E talvez amadurecer signifique que você não precisa ser uma personagem seguindo um roteiro. É saber que você pode ser a autora".

Eventualmente cruzo com histórias que certamente irão funcionar muito bem com outras pessoas mas não comigo, e este livro é um desses casos. Há quotes memoráveis, mas o livro não me marcou. Me lembrou muito de "As Vantagens de Ser Invisivel" (vários elementos são bem parecidos). Além disso:

*Esse elemento das cartas a famosos que morreram acaba ficando genérico rápido demais. É tipo "Querido (a) fulano de tal, li que você passou por tal coisa, agora vou te contar o meu dia, e me lembrou de tal momento com a minha irmã falecida".

*A protagonista é sem sal e sem personalidade, e não me cativou.

*O romance foi um caso tão bizarro de instalove que eu não consegui curtir. Fora que tem uma revelação perto do final que só piorou as coisas, na minha opinião.

Não me apaguei a nenhum personagem, mas admito que a leitura fluiu a partir de certo ponto. Achei a escrita bem morna e tediosa. Fora que certa revelação no final vem tão tarde e é tão previsível que te faz questionar porque a autora insistiu num ritmo moroso e arrastado até então. Leitura rápida, mas desgastante.

TW:luto, abuso sexual, violência doméstica.

This one fell just a tiny bit short for me. I think my expectations were too high. I liked the idea, but maybe not so much the sort of situations Laurel found herself in? I always get turned straight off if the main characters are smoking and sneaking alcohol without a second thought. In grade 9.

Still, it made me cry in at least one part, and you can't say a book's bad if it made you cry. And I did enjoy Ma's story,even if we only got glimpses of it.

4.5 stars

To be fair I’ve probably just outgrown this book. I am working on my TBR and it’s been on here since 2014.

Great read! I loved the letter/journal format as it allowed me to read a little or a lot at a time. I think this format also allows a deeper connection between the reader and character as you are let in on all the emotional day to day life of a teenager. The characters were relate-able. They seemed real, facing real issues. If only one complaint I felt that the characters were too honest. I doubt many teenagers today would be so open with their emotions, especially in relationships.

Overall a great read that tears at the heart and has you cheering on Laurel. There is no happy ending but a promise for a future.