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izzys_internet_bookshelf's review
1.0
1.5/5
I want to go cry. This tike for tow reasons, one because of the book and two because of the formatting of the book.
I want to go cry. This tike for tow reasons, one because of the book and two because of the formatting of the book.
jkneebone's review
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
A Year to the Day tells the story of 16-year-old Leo as she and the people around her react to her older sister Nina's death in a car accident. The novel begins a year after Nina's death, as Leo and her family (her divorced parents, stepmom Stephanie, and her new baby half-sister) hold a memorial service for Nina. It then travels backwards chronologically, taking us through significant and less-significant moments in Leo's life in the year since she lost her sister. A major player throughout these memories is East, Nina's boyfriend; Leo, East, and Nina were in the car together on the night of Nina's accident, but only East remembers what happens. Leo feels close to East because he is the only other one who understands Nina's loss in the same way that she does, but she also resents him for remembering what happened that night - and refusing to tell her.
By virtue of the layout of the novel, this gets sadder as it goes on. When you're introduced to Leo & family a year after the event, in chapter one, they seem damaged but coping; as the story continues, getting closer and closer to the night they lost Nina, the grief becomes more and more potent, and Leo (our POV character) copes less and less well.
I know that some people found the backwards chronology confusing; I personally didn't find it confusing and thought it was quite effective for the above-mentioned reason. I am a person who can get distracted if timelines don't make sense, but having the actual date and the "days since the accident" spelled out at the beginning of each chapter was a good amount of information, and I only noticed one timeline error in the book. I didn't feel like I was missing things in the beginning of the story - I'm sure if I went back to re-read it, I would catch more things the second time, but tbh I probably won't because it was quite sad!
The plot of A Year to the Day isn't anything revolutionary(I predicted the end twist that Leo was actually the one driving pretty early on - at the beginning I thought it was either that or she and East were hooking up behind Nina's back, but by halfway through I was pretty sure the Leo driving reveal was what was coming.) but the way that Benway brings you into the world of the characters and shows you their emotions is really well done. Leo's grief is so potent, but she's also so aware of how her reactions and emotions are viewed by the adults in her life; we also see the variety of ways that the other people in her life grieve Nina: her mom's depression, her dad's better-masked sadness, East's torment from remembering that evening, even though he already lost his mom when he was young. For a story like this, I think the backwards chronology is the key to it hitting you right in the gut; instead of the reader's experience ending at a place of closure, or at least more healing, the story ends when the grief is freshest and rawest. I cried through the last several days/sections. (And then cried more in the last section, when Nina crawled into Leo's bed and begged her for five more minutes.)
This isn't the kind of book I normally pick up - I read it because I had recently purchased it for my library after a student requested "books that will make me cry." This definitely fits the bill - it's not doing anything new, but it's a nuanced, realistic portrait of grief that will deliver the tears if that's what you're looking for. A small amount of cursing and a few scenes of underage drinking make this one appropriate for high schoolers or older middle schoolers, as long as they are able to handle the heavy topics of grief and death.
By virtue of the layout of the novel, this gets sadder as it goes on. When you're introduced to Leo & family a year after the event, in chapter one, they seem damaged but coping; as the story continues, getting closer and closer to the night they lost Nina, the grief becomes more and more potent, and Leo (our POV character) copes less and less well.
I know that some people found the backwards chronology confusing; I personally didn't find it confusing and thought it was quite effective for the above-mentioned reason. I am a person who can get distracted if timelines don't make sense, but having the actual date and the "days since the accident" spelled out at the beginning of each chapter was a good amount of information, and I only noticed one timeline error in the book. I didn't feel like I was missing things in the beginning of the story - I'm sure if I went back to re-read it, I would catch more things the second time, but tbh I probably won't because it was quite sad!
The plot of A Year to the Day isn't anything revolutionary
This isn't the kind of book I normally pick up - I read it because I had recently purchased it for my library after a student requested "books that will make me cry." This definitely fits the bill - it's not doing anything new, but it's a nuanced, realistic portrait of grief that will deliver the tears if that's what you're looking for. A small amount of cursing and a few scenes of underage drinking make this one appropriate for high schoolers or older middle schoolers, as long as they are able to handle the heavy topics of grief and death.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, Grief, and Death
steph01924's review
3.0
3.5 stars. You can read my full review at Forever Young Adult.
Keep the tissues handy if you cry easily or if you, like me, decided to read this when you were already in an emotionally fragile state. Robin Benway has a way with words when it comes to describing those little, devastating moments of grief that just punch you in the gut.
The decision to frame the story structure going backwards chronologically from 365 days after the accident is going to be a controversial one. I don't think it was ultimately successful for me, as it left me constantly double-checking the dates and timeline about where we were and seeing the outcome of an event and then suddenly being AT the event. It kept taking me out of the moment I was probably supposed to be drowning in.
So I gave up: I got about 40% in (read just past Christmastime and the holiday party) and then I said fuck it and began reading from the ending backwards so everything was in the correct order. I did also decide to keep going and skim the first 40% again, just to square up everything in my head, but overall: Zero regrets. In my completely unsolicited opinion, this is how it should've been structured, as I liked knowing a bit more about the characters/events than if I'd started at their beginning, but there were moments that I think I would've overlooked if I wasn't re-reading later portions after learning what happened at the start.
At the very least I almost would've preferred the first chapter be duplicated again at the end (you could trust that most people would want to jump back to the start of the book and reread it in light of everything they just read, but...would they?), just to hammer home the fact that you now understand everyone and their journeys more than you did when you were unceremoniously dumped into them the first time. And I wouldn't have hated a time jump to the future either, just to see how everyone was doing maybe 5 years down the line.
I don't think it grabbed me as much as Benway's last book, Far From The Tree, as the general plot was very familiar to other "younger sibling's older sibling dies and they have a (platonic or romantic) connection with that person's SO and also realize their sibling, who was the life of the party, was their own person" books I have read. But there is something about Benway's writing that feels universal and classic and speaks to me, so I would certainly pick up another of her books in the future.
Keep the tissues handy if you cry easily or if you, like me, decided to read this when you were already in an emotionally fragile state. Robin Benway has a way with words when it comes to describing those little, devastating moments of grief that just punch you in the gut.
The decision to frame the story structure going backwards chronologically from 365 days after the accident is going to be a controversial one. I don't think it was ultimately successful for me, as it left me constantly double-checking the dates and timeline about where we were and seeing the outcome of an event and then suddenly being AT the event. It kept taking me out of the moment I was probably supposed to be drowning in.
So I gave up: I got about 40% in (read just past Christmastime and the holiday party) and then I said fuck it and began reading from the ending backwards so everything was in the correct order. I did also decide to keep going and skim the first 40% again, just to square up everything in my head, but overall: Zero regrets. In my completely unsolicited opinion, this is how it should've been structured, as I liked knowing a bit more about the characters/events than if I'd started at their beginning, but there were moments that I think I would've overlooked if I wasn't re-reading later portions after learning what happened at the start.
At the very least I almost would've preferred the first chapter be duplicated again at the end (you could trust that most people would want to jump back to the start of the book and reread it in light of everything they just read, but...would they?), just to hammer home the fact that you now understand everyone and their journeys more than you did when you were unceremoniously dumped into them the first time. And I wouldn't have hated a time jump to the future either, just to see how everyone was doing maybe 5 years down the line.
I don't think it grabbed me as much as Benway's last book, Far From The Tree, as the general plot was very familiar to other "younger sibling's older sibling dies and they have a (platonic or romantic) connection with that person's SO and also realize their sibling, who was the life of the party, was their own person" books I have read. But there is something about Benway's writing that feels universal and classic and speaks to me, so I would certainly pick up another of her books in the future.
red_ladybug's review
challenging
emotional
inspiring
sad
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
melrosebreed's review
4.0
The backwards storytelling sometimes worked, sometimes didn’t, but it managed to end powerfully either way.
fieldsandi's review against another edition
I didn't enjoy the backwards timeline.
tay123's review against another edition
4.0
I thought the way the book was formatted was interesting. It starts off a year from the day the accident and works its way up to the day it happened. It made my brain have to process the book differently.
gurnoor's review
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Car accident, and Death
Moderate: Alcohol and Medical content