Seven Days of Us: A Novel
by Francesca Hornak
Spend Your Holidays with the Birches (5/31/2017)
Spend the Holiday's with the Birches.
They are the kind of people we all know – or think we know. The successful, older daughter. The beautiful younger daughter. Dad with his career and mom keeping the altogether. Just your average, suburban family.
Until quarantine puts them under one roof. For a week. Over the Holidays.
In short order the veneer of "doctor", "food critic", "self-absorbed daughter" and "mom" peels back to reveal real people with real problems – and often a very real sense of humor. The Birches can laugh at themselves, fight among themselves, laugh some more and come together when it counts.
Crisp writing, effortless character development and a touch of humor make Seven Days of Us an enjoyable and memorable story. You will find yourself hoping that Francesca Hornack returns to these characters - any one of them would make for a stand-alone book. Long before you turn that last page, you will be wondering, "What if Olivia … " and "Maybe Phoebe and Jesse could …"
And, as an added bonus, the best epilogue ever.
Thirteen Reasons Why
by Jay Asher
13 Reasons to Read this Story (5/19/2017)
The topic - teen suicide - is hard. Hard to understand and hard to learn about. But it is even harder for teens contemplating suicide who feel they have no place to turn.
In this story, Hannah thinks she has been very clear to others about her intentions, but that is not the case. I would imagine this happens often. The person hurting doesn't realize that everyone around them doesn't see it just floating around them like a dark cloud.
13 Reasons Why tells 13 separate stories that lead Hannah to her final decision. As a reader, the story gave ME 13 Reasons Why everyone needs to be more sensitive to other's feelings and needs. 13 Reasons to look for signs of depression. 13 Reasons to know who to ask - and HOW to ask - for help.
If you listen to the audio book, set aside some time after the last disc to decompress. It is powerful and deserves a moment to take in what happens.
Thank you, Jay Asher, for telling this story and doing your part to help teens struggling with depression.
