A review by maddiereadswords
Learned by Heart by Emma Donoghue

adventurous emotional reflective sad medium-paced

4.5

When I heard there was a new historical fiction novel about Anne Lister, I hoped I was going to like it, but this absolutely exceeded my expectations in every way. I won't lie, this really is a tragic and heartbreaking book in a lot of ways, but it's also an achingly beautiful story of two young girls falling in love, and all the tenderness and feelings that come with that. The school year sections are told in present tense (something, something, the past is still alive in the present, you can't take loved away, etc. etc.) and broken up into short vignettes that keep the story moving, and while the later letters interspersed (and the author's note at the end) speak to the tragedy of Eliza's life after school, I think the focus on that singular year, was a really powerful way to tell such a story.

This is not an overall happy book, and Anne Lister in particular was not always a very kind or good person, but this is, in my opinion, historical fiction at its finest!! I feel like I need to rewatch Gentleman Jack immediately, and also if you're read this far you've just lost the game.
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