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bigdreamsandwildthings 's review for:
Amelia Unabridged
by Ashley Schumacher
"It seems unfair that the world is often critical of finding meaning in another person. We're allowed to find ourselves in places, books, nature, but not in another human. We aren't allowed to mourn losing a piece of ourselves for too long - especially when young - because we must learn to stand on our own two feet.
But if the world must be made of car crashes and unspeaking books, let there at least be no guilt in companionship, no matter how brief. To quote Valerie, everything is silly because everything is temporary."
This book made me sob in the break room at work. So, there's that.
Amelia Griffin is a book lover and devourer, and an ardent Orman Chronicles fan. She and her best friend/sister Jenna have their futures planned out side by side, from college and beyond, and Jenna is convinced that their future together is more important than anything else. Until tragedy strikes, and Jenna dies. Amelia is left to pick up the pieces of herself by journeying to Michigan to find the source of a mysterious book that was delivered to her under questionable circumstances.
This is one of those books that is simultaneously cozy and heartbreaking, and it nails atmosphere. Lochbrook is a storybook town in every way, and Val's bookstore is a place that I would spend all my time in. It almost makes me want to open a bookstore in real life - it's just so vivid and homey and cozy and perfect in my mind.
Ashley perfectly captures what being a bookworm means in this novel as well. Amelia and Jenna are different kinds of book lovers; Jenna keeps her books in pristine condition, always has a plan while Amelia is more of a browser, but they are united in their love for words and the stories they consume. I am obsessed with one passage from the book that talks about how everyone has stories to tell, whether they're writers or architects or marine biologists - it's all just about how we choose to tell those stories, and the beating heart of this book is about those stories. They're all valid and worthy, as long as we believe in them.
N.E. Endsley is another highlight of this book, along with Alex and Val and the cast of supporting characters. Nolan is so sweet, so guarded, so afraid of opening himself up, and the ways that Amelia and Jenna both come in to help save his heart are beautiful. Everyone here feels so colourful and alive, like I know them all personally.
This is a book about books, about stories, about finding your own and pursuing it for no other reason other than it feels right and you love it. It's about love and grief and what happens when the person you love the most leaves, but also, it's a story about finding hope and working through that sadness and choosing yourself, whatever that means to you. I loved it so so much.
But if the world must be made of car crashes and unspeaking books, let there at least be no guilt in companionship, no matter how brief. To quote Valerie, everything is silly because everything is temporary."
This book made me sob in the break room at work. So, there's that.
Amelia Griffin is a book lover and devourer, and an ardent Orman Chronicles fan. She and her best friend/sister Jenna have their futures planned out side by side, from college and beyond, and Jenna is convinced that their future together is more important than anything else. Until tragedy strikes, and Jenna dies. Amelia is left to pick up the pieces of herself by journeying to Michigan to find the source of a mysterious book that was delivered to her under questionable circumstances.
This is one of those books that is simultaneously cozy and heartbreaking, and it nails atmosphere. Lochbrook is a storybook town in every way, and Val's bookstore is a place that I would spend all my time in. It almost makes me want to open a bookstore in real life - it's just so vivid and homey and cozy and perfect in my mind.
Ashley perfectly captures what being a bookworm means in this novel as well. Amelia and Jenna are different kinds of book lovers; Jenna keeps her books in pristine condition, always has a plan while Amelia is more of a browser, but they are united in their love for words and the stories they consume. I am obsessed with one passage from the book that talks about how everyone has stories to tell, whether they're writers or architects or marine biologists - it's all just about how we choose to tell those stories, and the beating heart of this book is about those stories. They're all valid and worthy, as long as we believe in them.
N.E. Endsley is another highlight of this book, along with Alex and Val and the cast of supporting characters. Nolan is so sweet, so guarded, so afraid of opening himself up, and the ways that Amelia and Jenna both come in to help save his heart are beautiful. Everyone here feels so colourful and alive, like I know them all personally.
This is a book about books, about stories, about finding your own and pursuing it for no other reason other than it feels right and you love it. It's about love and grief and what happens when the person you love the most leaves, but also, it's a story about finding hope and working through that sadness and choosing yourself, whatever that means to you. I loved it so so much.