Hmmm. I’m intrigued by the cover and the title but you’re review has definitely given me pause. I like a book that challenges but I’m not sure if this is potentially a little too challenging. They meet when Wavy is eight and Kellan has an accident in his engine and the connection is instantaneous. He is an adult and she is a girl and although it ends up being a love story, it is not so in its beginnings. He realizes how lonely and helpless Wavy is and takes it as a responsibility. Wavy's life is difficult and Kellan is the only good thing in it. Let’s just say, the evil aunt, the villain of the story? That would probably be me if I were a character in this book. Well, not exactly because I didn't like her and she hadn't done enough before everything went to hell. But you know what I mean... Bryn Greenwood: I worked for many years at a domestic violence shelter, so I’ve met and talked with many victims of DV, both adults and children. It’s a situation that so often appears in fiction and film for sensationalist purposes, so it was very important for me to try to show what abusive relationships look like when they’re not dramatized. In fact, it was only after I’d worked at the shelter for some time that I realized one of my previous relationships was verbally and emotionally abusive. Abuse that doesn’t include physical violence can be so invisible in our society.

Wavy es la hija de un hombre violento, mujeriego y traficante de drogas, y de una madre drogadicta y con profundos problemas emocionales, existenciales y psicológicos, que le transmite a su hija sus temores con relación a la comida y los gérmenes. After Wavy was born, Mom didn’t hear from Aunt Val for almost five years. The first news she had was that Uncle Liam had been arrested for dealing drugs, and Aunt Val needed money. Then Aunt Val got arrested for something Mom wouldn’t say, leaving no one to take care of Wavy. Was it all completely realistic? Maybe not. But in the end this is a fiction book and by remembering that it helped me to relax and just appreciate the story. Are my beliefs changed by what I read? Not really. Maybe this sounds strange and I don't really know how to explain what I mean, but I just feel a bit different after reading this. Do you sympathize with Amy's point of view? Did you ever do something you considered risky because you were afraid of missing out? I will give the author props for writing a controversial book that will stir up dialogues about abuse, consent, and sex. I'm sure it will draw inevitable comparisons to LOLITA, too. But I actually think I liked LOLITA better than this because Humbert was so unambiguously the bad guy, and that wasn't quite as clear in this book. Maybe that makes it a more compelling read for some, but that was what turned me off of it, and it disturbs me a little how many people are shelving this as "romance."

Book Summary

Until then I hadn’t known the stars had names. Arm extended, finger pointing, Wavy traced out shapes above her head, as though she were guiding the movements of the stars. A conductor directing a symphony.

Bryn Greenwood is a master storyteller. Her words put you right in the story with the characters. Her descriptions and characters are raw and almost too real. She was good at making me question my moral boundaries. I feel like the author was trying to make the reader understand that in some cases a teenager can be mature enough to consent to a relationship with an adult. I’m just going to have to disagree on that for a lot of reasons. Starred Review. Greenwood's powerful, provocative debut chronicles a desolate childhood and a discomfiting love affair... Intelligent, honest, and unsentimental.

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Amy learns a lot about "The Tragic and Edifying Story of Wavonna Quinn" by eavesdropping on her mother when she talks to her book club friends.

After all, it's just a story. To me, it was captivating. The book is written very well and I loved it. I'm delighted to have discovered this author and I'm looking forward to reading more. I'll leave it at that. :) Right up until that moment it was sweet and funny. Odd couple that they were, they had a real connection. Then he tugged her boot off and kissed the bottom of her bare foot. I could see him doing that kind of thing to his own kid, but she wasn’t. She was somebody else’s little girl. Love this! A new favorite!! This book really makes you question your beliefs and attitudes toward certain situations. The “villain” and “hero” seem to have switched places entirely. You need to read!! And, even though she had a really shiteous childhood, I appreciated that - while still difficult and believably tragic - Greenwood didn't make it SO over the top tragic that it made me roll my eyes.

Reader Reviews

There is a whole lot of ugly going on in this novel. It made me feel uncomfortable and squirmy as I read it. But.... This is a memorable coming-of-age tale about loyalty, defiance, and the power of love under the most improbable circumstances. Bryn Greenwood: Not as much as I’d like to. That’s the trade off for writing. It takes up some of my reading time. I will read very nearly anything without shame, but close to my heart are Anthony Trollope, Ursula K. LeGuin, Margaret Atwood, Toni Morrison, and Emma Donoghue.