Briana @ Pages Unbound
Written on Jan 11, 2017
Growing up across the street from each other, Scott and Cath have been best friends their entire lives. Cath would help Scott with his English homework, he would make her mix tapes (it's the 80's after all), and any fight they had would be forgotten over TV and cookies. But now they've graduated high school and Cath is off to college while Scott is at home pursuing his musical dreams. During their first year apart, Scott and Cath's letters help them understand heartache, annoying roommates, family drama and the pressure to figure out what to do with the rest of their lives. And through it all, they realize that the only person they want to turn to is each other. But does that mean they should be more than friends? The only thing that's clear is that change is an inescapable part of growing up. And the friends who help us navigate it share an unshakable bond.
- ISBN10 1250098408
- ISBN13 9781250098405
- Publish Date 1 November 2016
- Publish Status Out of Print
- Out of Print 9 February 2022
- Publish Country US
- Imprint Saint Martin's Griffin,U.S.
- Format Hardcover
- Pages 304
- Language English
Reviews
Bianca
Written on Nov 10, 2016
Sam@WLABB
Written on Oct 24, 2016
This story is told through a series of letters written between Scott and Catherine during her first year of college. The friendship and the strength of their friendship is the first thing that grabbed me. The banter between the two was funny, witty, and heartfelt. Each experienced some life altering events in their lives, but were lucky enough to have the other to rely on. These two have their ups and downs with each other too, but their friendship is so solid, it survives and grows stronger over that year apart.
Overall: Cute, funny, charming, heartwarming, and smile-inducing with awesome 80s musical references, which brought me back to my teens.
shannonmiz
Written on Sep 17, 2016
I looooved this one, guys! The whole book is told in letter format, from both Cath and Scott's POV. It was so fun, and I think that it really showed their distinct personalities, which I was happily surprised by. Scott and Cath were so different, but I love that their friendship stood the test of time, while still feeling really realistic. I was rooting for Scott and Cath the entire time- it was so clear how much they cared about each other from the start. I loved that it was set in 1982, the year of my birth (and yes, there was a letter from my birthday, and yes I was way too excited about it!) because it made the letters make sense- and that they still did talk on the phone, but since it was long distance, it made the letters make even more sense! (Note: For my younger friends, "long distance" phone calls were very pricey, and you got charged per minute and it wasn't great. Hence, the letters.)
The side characters were well done too, which also was a pleasant surprise! I fell in love with Scott's dad, and Dorothy the roommate.... didn't everyone have a Dorothy at one point during college? I would really love to read more YA about this time in characters' lives- it was such an upheaval for me personally, and I feel like there are SO many stories to be told!
The letters did provide a slight disconnect during a few points in the book, but emphasis on "slight"- it was really well done overall.
Bottom Line: I fell in love with the characters, and their stories and struggles seemed so very authentic. Definitely one of my favorite contemporaries of the year!