This is the story of Nick and Anna, two teenagers who meet while working a summer job together, and then their lives drift apart.

It’s told from Nick’s point of view, and we move back and forth through his life – his upbringing, his summer with Anna, his interactions with his family, his life after Anna, and their subsequent meetings over the years. This back-and-forth approach could get confusing, but it works well – I was able to keep track of the different strands.

It’s a beautiful book about flawed, messy humans, and the love between them. The characters have depth, complexity, and I care about what happens to them. There are some profound and lovely lines, and I wrote down a lot of quotes.

It explores different aspects of the human experience: love, memory, grief, regret. It’s not quite like any other book I’ve ever read. I nearly put it down after the first part, and I’m glad I kept going.

Content warnings: suicide, parental death, religion.

(see all reviews)