katie
Written on Jan 10, 2019
“Emotionally resonant and deeply characterized.” —School Library Journal (starred review)
From the author of You’ll Miss Me When I’m Gone comes a stunning contemporary novel, perfect for fans of Five Feet Apart, that examines the complicated aftermath of unrequited love between best friends.
Aspiring choreographer Sophie Orenstein would do anything for Peter Rosenthal-Porter, who’s been on the kidney transplant list as long as she’s known him. Peter, a gifted pianist, is everything to Sophie: best friend, musical collaborator, secret crush. When she learns she’s a match, donating a kidney is an easy, obvious choice. She can’t help wondering if after the transplant, he’ll love her back the way she’s always wanted.
But Peter’s life post-transplant isn’t what either of them expected. Though he once had feelings for Sophie, too, he’s now drawn to Chase, the guitarist in a band that happens to be looking for a keyboardist. And while neglected parts of Sophie’s world are calling to her—dance opportunities, new friends, a sister and niece she barely knows—she longs for a now-distant Peter more than ever, growing increasingly bitter he doesn’t seem to feel the same connection.
Peter fears he’ll forever be indebted to her. Sophie isn’t sure who she is without him. Then one heartbreaking night twists their relationship into something neither of them recognizes, leading them to question their past, their future, and whether their friendship is even worth fighting for.
- ISBN10 1481497774
- ISBN13 9781481497770
- Publish Date 9 June 2020 (first published 15 January 2019)
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country US
- Publisher Simon & Schuster
- Imprint Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
- Edition Reprint
- Format Paperback (US Trade)
- Pages 400
- Language English
Reviews
Sam@WLABB
Written on Dec 25, 2018
Sophie and Peter shared a friendship, which worked well in a bubble, but post-transplant, a lot of cracks begin to become more prominent, and I know I struggled with being both happy for and frustrated with Peter.
What could be more amazing, than to be given a chance to actually live? Peter had made peace with the idea that he would not have a long life. His world was pretty much his parents, his doctors, piano, and Sophie. He never really took the opportunity to figure out who he was or what he wanted out of life, and therefore, I was overjoyed that the transplant worked. Peter had the opportunity to go to school, make new friends, and explore his identity. He was rushing forward, but he wasn't taking Sophie with him, and that pained me.
I am going to tell you right now, there were tears, many tears. I think I cried during each and every one of Sophie's chapters. Sophie was the one I felt was being left behind. Even if I understood the why's, it still broke my heart, because I identified so hard with her. And unrequited love always, ALWAYS causes me heartache. Loving someone, who will never return those feelings is never easy, and Solomon did a fantastic job pulling me into Sophie's emotional wreckage.
The alternating point of view was a nice way to juxtapose the way Sophie and Peter were dealing with their changing dynamic and their new situation. Sophie was struggling with being left behind and not having her feelings reciprocated, while Peter grappled with wanting to explore his options, while feeling so indebted to Sophie. It was not easy for either of them, but I was glad that BOTH were having new and positive experiences.
A quick run-down of things I adored
• Great family dynamics and present parents
• Siblings
• Mark the chinchilla
• Music, music, music!
• Dancing and the dance team
• Books
• The band, Tabby, Luna, Josh, Chase and his family - I loved them all
Overall: A wonderful story of love, family, friendship, and identity, which was messy and packed with emotion.
*ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.
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shannonmiz
Written on Dec 7, 2018
"Because I was in love with him— the kind of love that made my throat ache with all the things I couldn’t say."
This is probably going to be one of "those" reviews that just amounts to incoherent gushing, and I am not sorry. When I heard there was a new Rachel Lynn Solomon book coming out, I had no doubt I'd like it. I loved You'll Miss Me When I'm Gone, but more than that I could just kind of tell that the author had a certain... specialness to her writing.
"The only regrets I have when it comes to Peter are things I don’t do. Things I don’t say."
And right I was. This book was absolutely everything I had hoped and expected, but then somehow, it was even more. In YMMWIG, while I related to the characters quite deeply on a human level, I never went through many of the things they had gone through. This one... well, it was different. Because it spoke to me. Told me things I needed to hear. And honestly, it's pretty damn powerful when a book has that ability.
"It takes a lot of energy to love someone this much without being loved back the way you want. It drains you."
And sure, I will tell you about all its positives from a more objective angle! The characters are incredibly relatable, whether you have been through any of the junk they have or none at all. Just like YMMWIG, it has the uncanny ability to make you love and care for these characters. They are flawed, and messy, and at their cores just good, decent people trying to navigate the world. The world with all its unwanted feelings and harshness and ups and downs.
You need more? Sure! It has funny moments, charming moments, heartwarming moments, and yeah, heartbreaking moments. The stories-within-stories make the pages fly by. You'll learn so much about all the relationships, beyond just their friendship-turned-mess. You'll see them coming of age, and dealing with all the highs and lows it encompasses.
"Sometimes you hurt, and sometimes you ache, but the worst pain is one you can’t put a name to and can’t swallow a pill to fix."
And yes, maybe you'll learn something about yourself, or about relationships of all sorts. Maybe this book will help you process some of your own bullshitty life stuff. Maybe it'll tell you stuff you had to hear, had to hear in the way Rachel Lynn Solomon tells it. Maybe, if you're really lucky, it'll be exactly what you need.
Bottom Line: This book is beautiful and honest and relatable, and quite frankly, flawless.
layawaydragon
Written on Nov 11, 2018
I was lucky enough to be chosen for this tour and I'm so excited to finally share this with everyone!
About Our year of maybe:
About the Author:
imho: our year of maybe;
Once I started reading Our Year of Maybe, I couldn't put it down. It starts with Sophie with her dance team at the last practice before summer break after junior year. She's giving a kidney to her best friend and crush Peter. Her fam isn't as happy about this as Peter's and things are tense. Peter now has the health and energy to to back to public school, and stand up to his parents while Sophie's feeling the pain in different ways.
I totally get Sophie's adaptation and camouflage around people. I connected with Sophie's personality struggles more while Peter's new life and romance were achingly adorable. Their families are dynamic and flawed and you'll have no problem keeping them and all the friends straight. There's dance team girls and a band. I like how unrequited love doesn't get solved with another romance. It's...tricky.
My favorite Sophie quotes:
Sophie Orenstein: perennial maybe.
Now that he's in school with me, he'll know what I really am when he's not around: a burnt-out light of a person.
"I didn't know you were capable of that, " Corrie says. The truth is that neither did I.
Favorite Peter Quotes:
I'm the miracle, but Sophie...Sophie is the hero.
In the past, I always envied groups like this, who were loud in public and laughed too much. Now I'm too loud. I laugh too much.
The terrible truth: Sophie is both a reminder of everything I went through and everything I can do now.
These are all quotes from early on in the book to introduce you to them. My absolute favorites are towards the very end and would be spoilers. Their journey together and apart is amazing. I can't really find the words to go into detail without giving away anything. It's....AHHHHHHHHHHHHH.
Things I Love About Our Year of Maybe:
- Teen Mom Making it Work. YES! I love her sister Tabby, her niece Luna, and the baby daddy. Very honest and decent portrayal about how having a child while a teen changes everything and makes some things so much harder.
- Reality of chronic kidney disease, dialysis, and catheters.
- Sophie has dyslexia
- Girl masturbation with a vibrator
- Sophie and her dad connect ad introverts hanging out in silence.
- Sophie, Peter, Tabby and the girl's dad all have passions for sound and music but in different ways, together similar but not.
- Picking quotes was so hard because I swear there's a highlight every couple of pages.
- It explores toxicity in relationships with family, friends, and romance.
For me, the best books keep me reading to through the acknowledgements. Teary eyed and clutching my chest, I read Solomon's acknowledgements thankfully for everyone she mentioned. It moved me enough to clarify what I would be proud of as an accomplishment and what I want to do going forward. Which sounds simple and stupid, but I've been struggling with where to go in my life for awhile.
I love this book. I think about it weeks after finishing and I have no doubt I'll continue to do so. This book set my year off with the best kind of start.
Giveaway:
Prize: Win a signed copy of OUR YEAR OF MAYBE by Rachel Lynn Solomon (US Only)
Starting date: 9th January 2019 - Ending date: 20th January 2019
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Tour Schedule:
This review was originally posted on The Layaway Dragon