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Reviews tagging 'Suicide'
Dear Evan Hansen by Steven Levenson, Justin Paul, Benj Pasek, Val Emmich
154 reviews
summermay1's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Addiction, Abandonment, Suicide, Drug abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Panic attacks/disorders, and Mental illness
braytonaubree's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
“No one should ever feel they have to suffer in silence. We need to keep talking about mental health and continue to reach out to those who might be suffering.”
🌳🌳🌳
• I’m pretty familiar with the story through the musical, but loved the expansion on the characters & relationships in this format (I was so shocked by just how many lines from the musical & songs are pulled directly from the text)
• Connor surprised me by being my favorite character- his pov helps the reader delve into his mind & sympathize with his experience, even though his death is the catalyst for the story
• full of impactful & beautifully written quotes
• the main themes of this book (mental health, anxiety, depression, suicide, suicidal ideation, etc.) are heavy & serious & usually tackled in a more adult setting, this story is a way of addressing these topics with an angle towards a younger audience, specifically young men - I think it’s so important that children/teenagers feel represented & heard in spaces like this & that’s a comfort this book can provide
• the way the writing flows makes it such an effortless read
• although I recognize the importance of this story & would still recommend it, as an adult woman, I feel like this book wasn’t really “for me”
⚠️ Content Warnings:
• suicide
• depression/anxiety
• drug use
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
1jessicabearx's review against another edition
dark
informative
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This story beautiful.
Evan’s constant lying is frustrating and makes each chapter tense as you worry what he's going to get caught up with or try to get away with next. But that's the whole point of the story so can I really fault that. I wish Evan had faced the consequences for all his actions though, as he gets away with too many things that have ultimately caused others so much pain and frustration.
As a fan of the musical, I found this book added a lot to the story and overall experience. Definitely give it a read if you can!
Evan’s constant lying is frustrating and makes each chapter tense as you worry what he's going to get caught up with or try to get away with next. But that's the whole point of the story so can I really fault that. I wish Evan had faced the consequences for all his actions though, as he gets away with too many things that have ultimately caused others so much pain and frustration.
As a fan of the musical, I found this book added a lot to the story and overall experience. Definitely give it a read if you can!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Mental illness, Death, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Gaslighting, Child death, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, and Grief
Minor: Drug use
josephscholl12's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide
tays_dear_reader's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Suicide, and Mental illness
Moderate: Self harm and Drug use
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders and Bullying
simbarabbit20's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Mental illness, and Suicide
Moderate: Child death, Suicide attempt, and Death
rayray_reid's review against another edition
It was just incredibly sad and at the point in my life my depression was back and it was just smarter to put the book down.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide
indigocrayon's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Mental illness
Moderate: Grief, Drug use, Drug abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Injury/Injury detail, and Addiction
Minor: Gaslighting and Bullying
kriskelly's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I’d give this book 3.5 stars overall!
I’ve been a fan of the Dear Evan Hansen musical since it originally premiered on Broadway, so this book was highly anticipated for me to read. Overall, I was intrigued by this book, but there were some aspects I wish they improved on.
TW: suicide, anxiety, mental health
This adaptation of the story provides a new insight, with additional details that the Broadway production does not mention. One of the aspects that I truly enjoyed was how in depth they go with Connor Murphy - the character who ends his life. It was intriguing how there were multiple chapters from Connor’s perspective to step away from Evan Hansen’s point of view. Connor brings up a character named Miguel multiple times, which is exclusive to the book, but adds so much background. I wish they included more background on that in the musical adaptation.
Speaking of Evan Hansen himself, that’s one aspect of the book I disliked. Evan as a character is quite honestly not a good person. The main plot of this book is that he gets caught up in this lie about being Connors friend to comfort his family, but I’m more so convinced that it’s because he desperately wanted to be close to Zoe Murphy (aka Connor’s sister). One part of the story that particularly made me uncomfortable was this quote: “These flowers should be for Zoe, as a gesture of, well, my affection or whatever, but instead I’m giving them to her mother because she lost her son” (pg 100). How low could you go with that line? I’m not convinced that Evan is truly deserving of praise from his actions.
I have much more opinions, but overall, there are parts of this book that I think that could be improved. I would highly recommend watching the musical, as I liked that adaptation more than the book. But overall this was an interesting read!
I’ve been a fan of the Dear Evan Hansen musical since it originally premiered on Broadway, so this book was highly anticipated for me to read. Overall, I was intrigued by this book, but there were some aspects I wish they improved on.
TW: suicide, anxiety, mental health
This adaptation of the story provides a new insight, with additional details that the Broadway production does not mention. One of the aspects that I truly enjoyed was how in depth they go with Connor Murphy - the character who ends his life. It was intriguing how there were multiple chapters from Connor’s perspective to step away from Evan Hansen’s point of view. Connor brings up a character named Miguel multiple times, which is exclusive to the book, but adds so much background. I wish they included more background on that in the musical adaptation.
Speaking of Evan Hansen himself, that’s one aspect of the book I disliked. Evan as a character is quite honestly not a good person. The main plot of this book is that he gets caught up in this lie about being Connors friend to comfort his family, but I’m more so convinced that it’s because he desperately wanted to be close to Zoe Murphy (aka Connor’s sister). One part of the story that particularly made me uncomfortable was this quote: “These flowers should be for Zoe, as a gesture of, well, my affection or whatever, but instead I’m giving them to her mother because she lost her son” (pg 100). How low could you go with that line? I’m not convinced that Evan is truly deserving of praise from his actions.
I have much more opinions, but overall, there are parts of this book that I think that could be improved. I would highly recommend watching the musical, as I liked that adaptation more than the book. But overall this was an interesting read!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide
Moderate: Self harm, Bullying, and Mental illness
sargentreads95's review against another edition
Sometimes musicals don't translate well onto pages. Maybe I'll pick up where I left off later, but for now this book is a no go for me.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Alcoholism, Bullying, and Death