Why We Broke Up

Boring. ( )

When Min breaks up with Ed, she decides to write a letter detailing exactly why they are breaking up. With the letter comes a box full of things: bottle caps, movie tickets, matches, books, toys, earrings, and every other item collected over the course of Min and Ed’s whirlwind relationship. All of the items are explained as Min works through her thoughts about their relationship, eventually dumping the box and the letter at Ed’s house.

There’s a lot of great stuff in Daniel Handler’s novel (with beautiful art by Moira Kalman), but perhaps the book’s greatest accomplishment is how well it captures the feeling of first love for two people. Smartly written and excellently paced, Handler’s novel is a testament to first love and first heartbreak and is definitely a standout book.

Min and Ed are total opposites: he’s a total douche-jock and she’s an arty, film-obsessed loudmouth. Despite the fact that no one else can figure out why Min and Ed are together, their love story works, and it’s absolutely something readers can relate to. As the story unfolds and Min begins to explain the significance of all the objects, readers are given access to the underside of Min and Ed’s story, and it’s a fascinating one.

What could be a fairly ordinary “opposites attract” love story is given new life through Handler’s exquisite storytelling. He makes his characters crackle with chemistry, and there’s so much honesty and authenticity in this book that it’s hard to put down or look away. This is a strong novel in every sense of the word with tons of crossover appeal.

The only downside to this near-perfect book comes near the end, with a conclusion that feels a little rushed and a little too cliche. Most readers will be willing to overlook this, though, as this is a poignant coming-of-age story that will stay with you long after you’ve turned the last beautifully-colored page.

Why We Broke Up by Daniel Handler. 2011: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. Library copy. Read for 2012 Cybils Round 1 Panel. ( )

How does Daniel Handler know so well what it's like to be a heartbroken, "arty" high school girl? Fantastically written. Wrenching. Love the Maira Kalman illustrations. She is brilliant as usual. ( )

It floors me that the same person who wrote [b:The Bad Beginning|78411|The Bad Beginning (A Series of Unfortunate Events, #1)|Lemony Snicket|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1327916627s/78411.jpg|1069597] is also responsible for this. I loved Min's voice-- her dry humor, her insightfulness, her willingness to take a chance and her self-chastisement after the fact. Being the sap that I am, I was rooting for Min and Ed the whole way through, and did NOT see the ending coming. The artwork was a lovely complement to the story. The only things that bring it down from a 5-star are the over-reliance on old movie references, and the difficulty that I had suspending disbelief about a high school junior writing a 300 page letter to her ex-boyfriend, as cathartic as it might be. Daniel Handler gets teenagers, though, and this was a true pleasure to read. ( )

I liked the physical book maybe a bit more than the story. The heavy, high quality paper and beautiful art. I also appreciated the structure of the narrative, a long break-up letter that tells the story of a short relationship through the objects Min has collected and are now giving back to Ed. I found the story honest and moving, if a bit too literary at times. The long rambling lists had a great rhythm but disrupted the story at times. I also found myself wanting to check on the movies and other references. I figured they were invented but I also thought, well maybe I've just never heard of them. It got distracting but I think it also served the story that we are all new to these references, like Ed. Fully deserving of the Printz Honor. ( )