Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published May 2018
416 pages
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publication Information
This thought-provoking novel is an exploration of friendship, regret, and redemption, for fans of Matt de la Peña and Marieke Nijkamp.
Luke and Toby have always had each other's backs. But then one choice - or maybe it is a series of choices - sets them down an irrevocable path. We'll Fly Away weaves together Luke and Toby's senior year of high school with letters Luke writes to Toby later - from death row.
Best friends since childhood, Luke and Toby have dreamed of one thing: getting out of their dead-end town. Soon they finally will, riding the tails of Luke's wrestling scholarship, never looking back. If they don't drift apart first. If Toby's abusive dad, or Luke's unreliable mom, or anything else their complicated lives throw at them doesn't get in the way.
In a format that alternates between Luke's letters to Toby from death row and the events of their senior year, Bryan Bliss expertly unfolds the circumstances that led to Luke's incarceration. Tense and emotional, this hard-hitting novel explores family abuse, sex, love, and friendship, and how far people will go to protect those they love. For fans of Jason Reynolds, Chris Crutcher, and NPR's Serial podcast.
"Starred Review. Bliss excels at this kind of storytelling, the sort that zeros in on a character and offers a full, vibrant picture of his or her circumstances and choices. ...[Bliss dares] his readers not only to see the depths of human complexity, but to care." - Booklist
"Starred Review. A poignant story of loyalty, abuse, and poverty...This compassionate and beautifully rendered novel packs an emotional punch." - Kirkus
"Starred Review. A powerful story of loyalty, betrayal, and crippling family dysfunction. Ages 14–up." - Publishers Weekly
"This fast-paced read will have teens tearing through chapters to find out why Luke is in jail. ... The conclusion will leave them devastated. This is [a] touching book about male friendship for fans of Jason Reynolds and Matt de la Peña." - School Library Journal
"A smart, rugged, all-too-true story of friendship under fire. Believable characters and page turning tension. Bryan Bliss is going to be around for a while." - Chris Crutcher, author of Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes
This information about We'll Fly Away was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Bryan Bliss is the author of We'll Fly Away, Meet Me Here, and No Parking at the End Times. He holds master's degrees in theology and fiction and works as a curriculum designer and developer. His nonfiction has been published in Image Journal, along with various other newspapers, magazines, and blogs. He lives in St. Paul, Minnesota, with his wife and two children.
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