Hello Goodbye: Summary and book reviews of Hello Goodbye by Emily Chenoweth, plus links to an excerpt from Hello Goodbye and a biography of Emily Chenoweth.

In the winter of 1990, Helen Hansen – counselor, wife, and mother in the prime of her life – is diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. The following August, Helen, her husband, Elliott, and their daughter, Abby, a freshman in college, take a trip to northern New Hampshire, where Helen will be able to say goodbye to a lifetime of friends. Ensconced in a historic resort in the White Mountains – a place where afternoon cocktails are served on the veranda and men are expected to wear jackets after six – the Hansens and their guests must improvise their own rituals of remembrance and reconnection. For Elliott, the trip is a parting gift to his beloved wife, as well as some needed respite from the caretaking duties that have become his main work. For Helen and the procession of old friends who come to pay their respects, the days offer a poignant celebration of a dear, too-brief life. And for Abby, still unaware that her mother’s cancer is terminal, the week brings a surprising conflict between loyalty and desire as, drawn by the youthful, spirited hotel staff, she finds herself caught between the affections of two very different young men. Heartbreaking and luminous, Hello Goodbye deftly explores a family’s struggle with love and loss, as a summer vacation becomes an occasion for awakening rather than farewell, and life inevitably blossoms in the face of death.

BookBrowse

Themes of love, relationship and loss abound, but are sometimes obscured by the commotion of shifting plots and story lines. Despite such fluctuations, Emily Chenoweth's novel holds unexpected and pleasant surprises. Her witty and engaging characters easily balance out the darker issues of mortality and the transience of life. A quick read, one laments the lack of time to get to know this group more intimately, but perhaps that is precisely the point of Hello Goodbye.  (Reviewed by Megan Shaffer).

Full Review (808 words).

Media Reviews

Kirkus Reviews An understated debut novel of great beauty and power about a vibrant woman who contracts terminal brain cancer.   Library Journal First novelist Chenoweth ... writes gracefully and eloquently of loss and love, portraying both generations at their most self-absorbed and most vulnerable.   Publishers Weekly Starred Review. Chenoweth's smart, unsentimental and poignant takes on living and dying ring true, and her exploration of coming-of-age and coming to terms with mortality is divine. Dave King, author of The Ha-Ha In Hello Goodbye, Emily Chenoweth fuses the lightness of social comedy with the ferocious candor of grief. Alice Sebold, author of The Almost Moon Hello Goodbye is a beautiful novel about a family on the brink of loss. Chenoweth's eye for telling detail is as sure as her language is playful ... both a wise and generous work. T Cooper, author of Lipshitz Six, or Two Angry Blondes Is it terrible to suggest that Hello Goodbye is like a literary Dirty Dancing - only with the added gravitas of terminal disease, and acting courtesy of the Royal Shakespeare Company? I hope not, because you're in some really good hands with Emily Chenoweth, whether she's surprising you with just the perfect detail or masterfully crafting moments so intimate that you almost want to turn away for fear of eavesdropping too blatantly. This is a powerful, tremendously accomplished debut.

Recent Reader Reviews

Readalikes

If you liked Hello Goodbye, try these:

---

---

These are 2 of the 7 readalike suggestions for Hello Goodbye. Members have full access to all readalikes. If you are a member, please login. To find out more about membership, click here.

Books with similar themes

• Novels
  
• USA 
  
• Mid-Atlantic 
  
• N.H. Vt. Maine 
  
• 1980s & '90s 
  
• 1st Books/1st Novels 
  
• Dealing with Loss 
  
• Physical & Mental Differences 
  
• Strong Female Leads