This book is beautiful and sad, painful and brave, uncomfortable and amazing. I had to stop reading so many times due to my tears obscuring the words and I'd sit, clutching the book to my chest waiting for the sorrow to pass.
It starts as a school assignment, write a letter to a dead person, but becomes so much more. Laurel is hurting, she's lost her older sister May, her family has fallen apart and she feels like she's disintegrating too. Nothing makes sense anymore so Laurel turns to the page and writes her pain down on paper. Addressing each letter to a celebrity who died tragically, she tries to explain to them and to herself what is happening in her life, and why she is feeling so lost and guilty.
I loved all the characters,
Laurel isn't perfect, she's not supposed to be, because none of us are. But her childish belief that her sister was, despite knowing deep down in her heart that it isn't true, makes her set herself impossible standards, dooming herself to constant failure.
May is a damaged, broken little girl who grows up too fast. She feels the responsibility of her family's happiness lies completely on her shoulders and that weight proves to much to bear.
Sky is cute, uninterested in popularity, smart, caring and kind. He has a deepness and maturity that belies his age but he's not flawless, he's human.
Hannah makes me cry so much. She's beautiful, but so broken. Life hasn't been kind to her, and she's deals with things the best she can. Unfortunately her need to feel loved pushes her into the wrong arms time and time again.
Natalie is honest, kind and strong. She's a wonderful friend and her love for Hannah is for me, the most beautiful story in the book.
Every character, is there for a reason, they are the pieces of the puzzle that is Laurel's story.
Thank you Ava Dellaira for this beautifully written book, for the honesty and for not holding back with the reality of how harsh life can sometimes be. But thank you also for the poetry, and for the love and friendship and the sparks of light that remind us why we're all still here.
I give Love Letters to the Dead five stars ★★★★★
isbn 978-1-4714-0288-3
Published in 2014 by Hot Key Books
I bought a copy of this book
