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A review by nicolemhewitt
Dear Evan Hansen: The Novel by Val Emmich
5.0
This review and many more can be found on my blog: Feed Your Fiction Addiction
I actually discovered this musical when I saw the book listed on NetGalley. I know, that's weird and backward, and I have to stop living in a cave (a cave filled with books?), but that's how it happened. I saw a YA book based on the "hit Broadway musical" and thought, I need to check this out. So, I headed over to Amazon for a quick listen---and instantly fell in love with the music.
So, I went into this book loving the musical and knowing the basic storyline (since I read a synopsis to fill in the gaps between songs). I wasn't sure how the book would hold up, but I have to say it did pretty darn well. I love the addition of Carter's perspective, especially. We finally get to see his side of the story and not just the picture that's painted for us by others. And, of course, we get a deeper look into Evan's perspective as well. This is the type of character who I might be tempted to really dislike---he does a myriad of horrible, unlikable things---but being inside his head, I found myself feeling sympathy instead of distaste. I love that his actions are never condoned---the overall message of the book is not that what he did (lying to the family of a kid who committed suicide) is alright---but we see why he felt trapped in the moment and then couldn't quite dig himself out. He makes a LOT of bad decisions along the way, but I knew that going in, which probably helped. I will say that the book lacked some of the emotional impact of the musical (you just can't replicate that heightened emotion that you get in song), and I missed the true connection to the moms that I get with the musical (since I'm a mom, I can completely relate to that feeling that you're doing everything wrong and you have no idea how to make life better for your kids). Still, I was overall really pleased with this version of the story, and I highly recommend it to teens, who so often feel alone.
(While you're here, check out my recap of the epic book tour event for this book!)
***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***
I actually discovered this musical when I saw the book listed on NetGalley. I know, that's weird and backward, and I have to stop living in a cave (a cave filled with books?), but that's how it happened. I saw a YA book based on the "hit Broadway musical" and thought, I need to check this out. So, I headed over to Amazon for a quick listen---and instantly fell in love with the music.
So, I went into this book loving the musical and knowing the basic storyline (since I read a synopsis to fill in the gaps between songs). I wasn't sure how the book would hold up, but I have to say it did pretty darn well. I love the addition of Carter's perspective, especially. We finally get to see his side of the story and not just the picture that's painted for us by others. And, of course, we get a deeper look into Evan's perspective as well. This is the type of character who I might be tempted to really dislike---he does a myriad of horrible, unlikable things---but being inside his head, I found myself feeling sympathy instead of distaste. I love that his actions are never condoned---the overall message of the book is not that what he did (lying to the family of a kid who committed suicide) is alright---but we see why he felt trapped in the moment and then couldn't quite dig himself out. He makes a LOT of bad decisions along the way, but I knew that going in, which probably helped. I will say that the book lacked some of the emotional impact of the musical (you just can't replicate that heightened emotion that you get in song), and I missed the true connection to the moms that I get with the musical (since I'm a mom, I can completely relate to that feeling that you're doing everything wrong and you have no idea how to make life better for your kids). Still, I was overall really pleased with this version of the story, and I highly recommend it to teens, who so often feel alone.
(While you're here, check out my recap of the epic book tour event for this book!)
***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***