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3.39 AVERAGE
3.39 AVERAGE
Achingly Sweet: Why We Broke Up by Daniel Handler It's hilarious, it's real-life relationship dilemma. It's first love yet it's also why Ed and Min broke up. It showed me the wonders of film, criminy, as Ed said it was. But now I realized even if love can change a thing about Ed, or anyone else, maybe even enjoying the "different" side he thought was gay, for the sake of love, still won't make it work. If only love can put things in sync entirely without having to make things complicated "trying to go with it", if only it turned Ed a true man who can stand proud for Min, and only Min, then it'll be a happy ending for them. Above anything else, I love the characters, love the poetic Handler writing, love the flashbacks. I giggled at the memories, I even teared up at the challenges between the characters.Quick note: I've broken up with my exes without giving anything back, any memories back to them, because that will be such a revenge and it'll tear their world apart, remembering everything.Oh well, poor Ed, he fell in love and messed up with the wrong girl. xD
I felt like it was written similarly to “Normal People”, which wasn’t my favorite style. I’d give it another chance because it sounded interesting, but not now.
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was kind of weird. I liked it, but I don't know if I would recommend it.
Review also found here
I had such high hopes for this book. Maybe that has something to do with why I did not enjoy it. It took me forever to get through it even though it isn't even that long. The writing was weird and dragged for almost the entire book and it felt like nothing even really happened throughout the whole novel.
I couldn't stand the characters. They all felt extremely fake and over the top to me. The way Min handled the breakup and everything that came after seems extremely petty and childish even though she's supposed to be in high school. Ed seemed like he was just there to be the bad guy and Al I can barely even remember.
The only thing I really enjoyed about this book was the illustrations and the fact that it was written as a letter telling what happened in the past leading up to why these two teenagers broke up. If it hadn't been so angsty maybe I could have loved the book a little more.
I had such high hopes for this book. Maybe that has something to do with why I did not enjoy it. It took me forever to get through it even though it isn't even that long. The writing was weird and dragged for almost the entire book and it felt like nothing even really happened throughout the whole novel.
I couldn't stand the characters. They all felt extremely fake and over the top to me. The way Min handled the breakup and everything that came after seems extremely petty and childish even though she's supposed to be in high school. Ed seemed like he was just there to be the bad guy and Al I can barely even remember.
The only thing I really enjoyed about this book was the illustrations and the fact that it was written as a letter telling what happened in the past leading up to why these two teenagers broke up. If it hadn't been so angsty maybe I could have loved the book a little more.
What I expected from this book, was... well not what I got.
I wasn't expecting it to be a 'letter' that isn't really a letter... since I honestly can't think of anyone who would write someone a letter that exceeds 2 pages -- unless you're my mom.
The idea of it was relatable: as I was reading I kept thinking back on all the little things I had collected over the years that are tokens for 'major events' during relationships. I still have playbills from the theatre, post-it's with little scraps of poetry, pressed flowers... etc.
But, the little stories it included about the items she collected - weren't believable, and utterly frustrating at times to read through.
Yes, Min... you are 'different' because I can't think of anyone who would willingly want to go along with half of the ideas you dream up.
(The art was fabulous though!)
I wasn't expecting it to be a 'letter' that isn't really a letter... since I honestly can't think of anyone who would write someone a letter that exceeds 2 pages -- unless you're my mom.
The idea of it was relatable: as I was reading I kept thinking back on all the little things I had collected over the years that are tokens for 'major events' during relationships. I still have playbills from the theatre, post-it's with little scraps of poetry, pressed flowers... etc.
But, the little stories it included about the items she collected - weren't believable, and utterly frustrating at times to read through.
Yes, Min... you are 'different' because I can't think of anyone who would willingly want to go along with half of the ideas you dream up.
(The art was fabulous though!)
emotional
funny
reflective
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:
Yes
I’ve been trying to read this book for 4 years and I finally did. Turns out, I do not like this book at all. It had some funny lines but I’m glad it’s over.
Gave it 4 stars because this was such an enjoyable read. Is that fine? That I'm enjoying someone's sort-of-misery? And by that I mean Min's heartbreak? Haha
Getting over someone or at least trying to get over someone you really love is hard and it's awful and amazing at the same time that although "we never experience the same love twice", we come together in a glorious moment of understanding that heartbreaks are.. well... heartbreaking.
I've been rewriting this line for a dozen times but initially I wanted to say that her movie references were getting annoying in the last few pages AAANNNNNND it made me go through that thought over and over while I was rewriting that line, like why is it annoying?!?! I realized, it wasn't. It's even funny actually because I have this mental image of her writing the letter and gross sobbing, ugly crying and still after all of that, there she is - Min, who swore by films with all her movie references and her broken heart. I love it!
I couldn't stop thinking about that entry where Min talks about dailies and how she, in that moment, was replaying the events of the day with Ed in her head and how she was like a director replaying the dailies and seeing the scene in different angles everytime. God, that was beautiful. It puts better words and good film metaphors to something I often go through.
Here are some of the lines I highlighted on my Kindle:
"You know I want to be a directos, but you could never truly see the movies in my head and that, Ed, is why we broke up."
"You eaither have the feeling or you don't."
"'No', you said, and touched me, juston the shoulder, I'm sure yo don't remember but it was swoony for me."
"'Stop saying no offense when you say offensive things. It's not a free pass'"
"Phillip Murray and Wanda Saxton meet in the last scene under the rainy awning, their wrong wife and fiance finally story-lined away, and walk out together into the downpour - we know from the first scene, Christmas eve, that both of them like walking in the rain but don't have anybody who will do it with them - and it's the miracle of the ending."
"It was a secret time and place, you next to me, untraceable and out of this world."
My copy of the novel is an Amazon e-book and so it has all these reviews from different authors placed at the last section of the book called "More Heartbreak" and I think they're funny so I'd like to share a few of my favorites:
"He broke my heart. Then I broke his. I laughed at his pain." -Judy Blundell
"The first boy I fell in love with didn't know I loved him, but managed to break my heart anyway." -Holly Black
"The boy I loved didn't know I existed. Then again, he was obsessed with Camus, so he didn't know if any of us existed." -David Levithan
Getting over someone or at least trying to get over someone you really love is hard and it's awful and amazing at the same time that although "we never experience the same love twice", we come together in a glorious moment of understanding that heartbreaks are.. well... heartbreaking.
I've been rewriting this line for a dozen times but initially I wanted to say that her movie references were getting annoying in the last few pages AAANNNNNND it made me go through that thought over and over while I was rewriting that line, like why is it annoying?!?! I realized, it wasn't. It's even funny actually because I have this mental image of her writing the letter and gross sobbing, ugly crying and still after all of that, there she is - Min, who swore by films with all her movie references and her broken heart. I love it!
I couldn't stop thinking about that entry where Min talks about dailies and how she, in that moment, was replaying the events of the day with Ed in her head and how she was like a director replaying the dailies and seeing the scene in different angles everytime. God, that was beautiful. It puts better words and good film metaphors to something I often go through.
Here are some of the lines I highlighted on my Kindle:
"You know I want to be a directos, but you could never truly see the movies in my head and that, Ed, is why we broke up."
"You eaither have the feeling or you don't."
"'No', you said, and touched me, juston the shoulder, I'm sure yo don't remember but it was swoony for me."
"'Stop saying no offense when you say offensive things. It's not a free pass'"
"Phillip Murray and Wanda Saxton meet in the last scene under the rainy awning, their wrong wife and fiance finally story-lined away, and walk out together into the downpour - we know from the first scene, Christmas eve, that both of them like walking in the rain but don't have anybody who will do it with them - and it's the miracle of the ending."
"It was a secret time and place, you next to me, untraceable and out of this world."
My copy of the novel is an Amazon e-book and so it has all these reviews from different authors placed at the last section of the book called "More Heartbreak" and I think they're funny so I'd like to share a few of my favorites:
"He broke my heart. Then I broke his. I laughed at his pain." -Judy Blundell
"The first boy I fell in love with didn't know I loved him, but managed to break my heart anyway." -Holly Black
"The boy I loved didn't know I existed. Then again, he was obsessed with Camus, so he didn't know if any of us existed." -David Levithan
