Dear Edward: A Read with Jenna Pick: A Novel

Loved this from start to finish. Hard to put down. Loved the story and all the characters in it. Highly recommend.

This is the story of a young boy named Edward. He and his family are flying across the country to California for a big family move when their plane crashes killing everyone on board except for Edward. His story captures the country and he struggles to figure out what to do now that his whole family is gone. Taken in by a loving aunt and uncle who never had children, he is not sure how to fit in. He meets the girl next door, and they form an instant bond. Together with his aunt, uncle, his friend and his counselor, Edward starts to move forward. The book goes back and forth between the few years following the crash to the people who are on board the plane. Edward tries to figure out how he - as the only one who survived - can help all of the families of the other passengers. I had actually started a book for my Read The World Challenge, and had pulled Dear Edward for my "book to read at night". But I started this book and couldn't put it down, so I quit the other to finish this one. IT was a great book. I was so tense knowing that the plane crash was coming, and how it was going to play out in those final moments before it hit the ground. And when the crash finally happens, I found myself overwhelmed with feelings about how that must have been for those people on board. The book is well written and flows well between the past and present. You feel Edward's struggle with what to make of all the attention and the loss of his family at the age of 12. He has lost everything he knew. And it takes him years to finally come to terms with what his life would be life from now on. You can feel his turmoil. I highly recommend. It was a great read.

This book moved me like no other book. I’ve read in many many years. I’m glad I happened upon it and read it. It’s exceptional.

This novel was so compelling that I read it in a 3 1/2 hour stretch. I couldn’t put it down. the author seamlessly moves between Edward as he attempts to move through life after the crash and the doomed humanity that filled the plane whose lives stopped at the moment of the crash. It’s heartbreaking and hopeful I simply loved it.

"Dear Edward," by Ann Napolitano, is the poignant story of a 12-year-old boy who became the only survivor of a plane crash. Napolitano got the idea for her novel from two actual plane crashes, but this book is entirely fiction. The chapters alternated in time from the present (after the crash) to the past (time on the flight). Knowing in advance that the people would perish made a difference to me as I read. I tried not to get attached to the characters, but Napolitano made it hard not to embrace their diverse and unique characteristics. I felt a sense of dread and pathos as I witnessed their last moments. Edward's life after the crash is a tough read. He lost both parents and an older brother that he idolized. He went to live with an aunt and uncle, but even that family connection was not enough to compensate for his devastating losses. Mentally and emotionally, he struggled. His aunt and uncle had tried unsuccessfully to have a baby, but a series of miscarriages extinguished their hopes. The only room they had available for Edward on such short notice was furnished as a nursery, which left him recoiling in horror. He never occupied that room, spending each night at the home of a neighbor, where he was allowed to sleep on the floor of the room of a girl named Shay, who was also 12. This arrangement went on for years until high school, which I found to be improbable, but which all the adults condoned because Shay had become Edward's lifeline. Edward was a reluctant celebrity, having been identified as the sole survivor of a major plane crash. Not only did this unwelcomed attention come to him at school, but he also became the unknowing recipient of hundreds of letters from the relatives of people who died on the plane, usually asking if he remembered seeing them or if he would carry out some aspiration that the deceased person had. Edward's uncle hid these letters in a garage, but Edward stumbled upon them and secretly shared them with his best friend Shay. The plot from that point is driven by what Edward decided to do about the letters. Edward enjoyed an unusual amount of freedom, as his aunt and uncle granted him a great deal of latitude, perhaps too much. The story took him through high school graduation and gave a glimpse into how he might decide to spend his future, along with a fortune of insurance money and donations that came his way. While the book is the story of perseverance in the face of overwhelming odds, it left me with a hollow feeling that Edward would never fully recover from the loss of his family.

Loved this beautifully written story. Thought provoking, and a call to live your best life. Plan to read all of this author’s other books.

Storia che richiama alla memoria altri incidenti aerei. Eddie e/o Edward non sarà mai più uguale.

The best book I've read in a very long time. Extremely well written and structured. I couldn't put it down; and felt deprived of something wonderful when I reluctantly came to the last page.

Not as heartfelt as you would imagine

Worth reading .Excellent book

Following a healing journey of a flight crash survivor, the novel is a totally heart-breaking novel. Grieving, letting living with a tragedy, and moving forward carry the healing journey of Edward.