16 Ways to Break a Heart

May 15, 2017
Talented teen Los Angelenos recall their toxic romance in this angst-y breakup story. Aspiring high school artist Natalie and filmmaker Dan (both white) are over when the story starts, but through a series of letters, Nat reminds Dan of all the ways (or at least the titular 16) he broke her heart. At their first meet-cute in a coffee shop, 17 months earlier, Nat and Dan instantly connect. Their witty banter and palpable chemistry seem to mark the start of an epic romance, but Nat's wealth, art-world connections (her mom is a "semi-famous painter"), ambition, and undeniable genius intimidate "Public School Boyfriend" Dan. "Sexy, scary, manic, messy" Nat, meanwhile, grows jealous of Dan's obviously devoted mixed-race best friend, Ruby, and his text flirtations with gorgeous, white classmate Arielle. The chapters switch points of view and timelines, with text transcripts between various characters interspersed. Nat's letters flash back to such relationship milestones as her first kiss with Dan, their first time in bed, first fight, first "hate-fuck," etc. After reading each letter, Dan offers reflections (or refutations) in the present, the juxtapositions revealing both to be unreliable narrators. Readers may have to reread a chapter's time stamp to keep up, and it's occasionally tedious to revisit the same moment again and again. A frustratingly abrupt denouement won't satisfy readers hoping for a cathartic redemption. A well-written but melodramatic he-said, she-said epistolary retrospective of an unhealthy relationship. (Fiction. 14-18)

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June 1, 2017

Gr 10 Up-She's exciting; he's charming: Natalie and Dan fell in love almost instantly. But that was some time ago, and now Natalie is sending Dan packets of letters detailing moments of their relationship. The letters start out sweet, but as we shift to Dan's perspective, he's waiting for the other shoe to drop: he knows there's a big reveal coming. Natalie wants Dan to know how much she loved him and how much he hurt her. Dan wants Natalie to understand how her jealous rages destroyed them both. The "he said, she said" narrative brings to life this toxic, slow-motion train wreck of a relationship. Seeing the story largely through Dan's eyes-through conversations with his friends and his reactions to Natalie's letters-means that teens get a biased analysis of what went wrong, with the book stressing Natalie's temper and instability while downplaying Dan's flirtation with his other friends. This is a decent choice for teens who enjoyed Daniel Handler's Why We Broke Up but wished it had more drama. VERDICT An additional purchase for YA shelves.-Brandy Danner, Coakley Middle School, Norwood, MA

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