Letters to the Lost Paperback – March 6, 2018

Guys. I was not prepared for how unputdownable this book would be for me. I read it in about 3 sittings, despite having a baby and deadlines and a filthy house and all of the other things.Juliet and Declan's story grabbed me from the very first page. I found myself saying "just one more chapter" again and again and again, only to find myself 50 or 100 pages further into the book. My favorite part was how real the characters became in the space of just a few lines - their pain, their vulnerability, their hope, all of it. You're not only rooting for them as a potential couple but as individuals who desperately need healing separately, too.In fact, I just all around loved that the romance (though strong) wasn't the focus of the story. That we get to know their families, their friends, their teachers, mentors, etc, and that each one of them feels as real as the two leads. Our lives aren't made up of one person, they're made up of a dozen people, all of whom have roles to play.LETTERS TO THE LOST reminds us that sometimes people let us down, but that doesn't mean that we get to stop trying, or stop digging beneath the snapshot they present the world. Not if they matter to us. Because the only way to heal, to move forward, is to truly understand that although everyone has flaws, and makes mistakes, everyone also has the potential to surprise us in the best way possible.I loved it. 100%.

GRADE: A-4.5 STARSJuliet leaves goodbye notes at her mother's grave. One day an anonymous stranger writes: Me too. That stranger is classmate and bad boy Declan, who is doing community service mowing lawns at the cemetery. The two begin anonymously writing letters, developed a close bond that might shatter if she learns his identity and why she's doing community service.Brigid Kemmerer's debut novel has all the components of a great story. Her characters are diverse, unique and multidimensional. I loved the minor characters especially Declan's best friend Rev, a white boy who was adopted by black parents from foster care due to abuse. Declan's supportive teacher and probation supervisor were also important adults in his parents of the story.The writing flows with ease and heart, never manipulating emotion. While the plot was a little predictable, she avoided convenient pitfalls (I can't say without spoiling). Points of view alternate chapters narrated by Declan and Juliet. I forgot whose I was reading often, although chapters had email headers, naming the narrator with the chapter heading would have been helpful.LETTERS TO THE LOST is a beautiful, moving story about grief and self forgiveness.

Letters to the Lost is a story that is based on letters and emails but isn't limited to them. Declan Murphy, a boy with a bad reputation, starts corresponding with Juliet Young after he finds a letter she wrote to her mother in a cemetery. They don't know one another's identities, but this anonymity makes it easier to tell one another truths about themselves and their lives.I like the characters. This book is definitely a character novel rather than a plot-based novel. Things happened, but the plot is much less important than what is going on inside each of them. My favorite. Declan and his best friend Rev are the standouts for me. I loved Rev so much that I wouldn't mind a sequel for him. I never want that. There was just something heartbreaking about his tough/vulnerable dichotomy. I appreciate that Brigid Kemmerer allowed her characters to be flawed. Declan has a habit of taking offense and losing his temper sometimes without reason, and Juliet is sometimes self-absorbed and judgmental. The writing is strong enough that you understand their poor choices and aren't frustrated by them.There is a strong theme of reputation and expectations. How do we respond to how the people around us see us? What does it take for perspectives to change? Both Declan and Juliet are constrained by a predetermined definition of who they are. The definition is partly defined and upheld by themselves. Much of their journey lies in figuring out that both they and the people around them are infinitely more complex that the narrow vision that they have of them.Recently there was a situation at my school where a student asked for help dealing with a home situation. One thing that my school really values and puts a premium on is relationships. And while day to day it does make for a great learning and working environment, more importantly, it allowed a twelve-year-old boy to know that if he reached out, he would get help. Bear with me. I swear this relates to Letters to the Lost. I happened to be finishing up this book at the time and what I found both unusual and heartening was the amount of positive, healthy adult interaction. Shout out to the English teacher who differentiates an assignment because of *gasp that it what the student needs. How often does that happen in YA? Especially in a book that deals with death, abuse, foster care, and let's face it, high school. Sometimes there MIGHT just be one adult who cares but overall adults are not to be trusted. In this book, almost every adult when clearly communicated with had the best of intentions and was willing to support and help as best they could. There needs to be more of this in YA. YA is supposed to be for teenagers. Or preteens such as my students. Adults might like it and read it but we are are the not the target audience. When all the books show adults as monsters, users, incompetent, or absent what message are we sending them? Especially those that need help? I am glad that Letters to the Lost managed to subvert that trope.Brigid Kemmerer's other books seem to be something along the line of YA elemental urban fantasy. I am not super interested in them but I will be on the lookout for her next book.