Status
Available
Call number
Call number
F EMM
Genres
Collections
Publication
Poppy (2018), 368 pages
Description
Young Adult Fiction. Young Adult Literature. HTML:From the show's creators comes the groundbreaking, bestselling novel inspired by the hit Broadway show Dear Evan Hansen. Dear Evan Hansen, Today's going to be an amazing day and here's why... When a letter that was never meant to be seen by anyone draws high school senior Evan Hansen into a family's griefover the loss of their son, he is given the chance of a lifetime: to belong. He just has to stick to a lie he never meant to tell, that the notoriously troubled Connor Murphy was his secret best friend. Suddenly, Evan isn't invisible anymoreâ??even to the girl of his dreams. And Connor Murphy's parents, with their beautiful home on the other side of town, have taken him in like he was their own, desperate to know more about their enigmatic son from his closest friend.As Evan gets pulled deeper into their swirl of anger, regret, and confusion, he knows that what he's doing can't be right, but if he's helping people, how wrong can it be? No longer tangled in his once-incapacitating anxiety, this new Evan has a purpose. And a website. He's confident. He's a viral phenomenon. Every day is amazing. Until everything is in danger of unraveling and he comes face to face with his greatest obstacle: himself. A simple lie leads to complicated truths in this big-hearted coming-of-age story of grief, authenticity and the struggle to belong in an age of instant connectivity and profound isolati… (more)
Original publication date
2018
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User reviews
LibraryThing member JaxlynLeigh
*I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review*
I haven’t seen the play yet, but really enjoyed the book. A simple error snowballs for Evan, who doesn’t mean any ill intent. Relatable on many levels.
I haven’t seen the play yet, but really enjoyed the book. A simple error snowballs for Evan, who doesn’t mean any ill intent. Relatable on many levels.
LibraryThing member N.W.Moors
I'm so glad I got this book. I hesitated, as I love the show and got to see it in NYC, but it's a wonderful addition to the musical. It also stands on its own as a good story. There's a lot more backstory about Connor especially that adds to the experience and explains his motives.
I know the play
It's a really inspirational story. Since seeing the play, I've wished that it was more available, and this is a great way to spread it. Though I'm going to see the national tour when it comes to Boston.
Have you ever felt like nobody was there?
Have you ever felt forgotten in the middle of nowhere?
Have you ever felt like you could disappear?
Like you could fall, and no one would hear?
Well, let that lonely feeling wash away
Maybe there's a reason to believe you'll be okay
'Cause when you don't feel strong enough to stand
You can reach, reach out your hand
And oh, someone will coming running
And I know, they'll take you home
Even when the dark comes crashing through
When you need a friend to carry you
And when you're broken on the ground
You will be found
So let the sun come streaming in
'Cause you'll reach up and you'll rise again
Lift your head and look around
You will be found
I know the play
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was based on a real story (with changes). I really enjoyed here how the lyrics for songs were brought in seamlessly (though I think I was singing them in my head). It's a really inspirational story. Since seeing the play, I've wished that it was more available, and this is a great way to spread it. Though I'm going to see the national tour when it comes to Boston.
Have you ever felt like nobody was there?
Have you ever felt forgotten in the middle of nowhere?
Have you ever felt like you could disappear?
Like you could fall, and no one would hear?
Well, let that lonely feeling wash away
Maybe there's a reason to believe you'll be okay
'Cause when you don't feel strong enough to stand
You can reach, reach out your hand
And oh, someone will coming running
And I know, they'll take you home
Even when the dark comes crashing through
When you need a friend to carry you
And when you're broken on the ground
You will be found
So let the sun come streaming in
'Cause you'll reach up and you'll rise again
Lift your head and look around
You will be found
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LibraryThing member bookwyrmm
Very interesting concept. I haven't seen the musical, but after reading this, I decided to try the soundtrack, which seemed to have a bit of lightness that this wanted but didn't quite achieve.
LibraryThing member sbenne3
Great YA read which is very topical right now. This book takes a look at adolescent relationships with other adolescents and parents through one boy's eyes. The insights are interesting and the emotion is real. I really read it because it is on my list of shows to see in NYC, but it was worth the
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read and might be worth reading with someone young in your life that you have trouble talking about these things with. Show Less
LibraryThing member mjspear
This novelization of the hit Broadway show is packed with laughter and tears. Evan suffers from crippling anxiety and finds each day a struggle to "engage." Without giving too much away, something happens to throw a spot light on Evan but it's predicated upon a lie. Trouble ensues. A heart-worthy
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look at teens and social issues... surprisingly funny (Evan is 'king' of the "wait...what?" reaction; Jerad is the sardonic side-kick who says the outrageous things we'd all like to say) the book is best when it focuses on Evan's growth and self-realization. It falters when the plot turns to tidying up the messy situation (the doing-good stuff). Similar, at least to this reader, to "Me and Earl and the Dying Girl" but with a happier, G-rated ending. Show Less
LibraryThing member theWallflower
My first impressions were that this is another “whiny kid” YA book. What I mean by that is it tries to make the character identifiable and relatable by immediately making him an social outcast with no friends and low self-esteem… except that every YA story is like that, so it gets grating.
There are typical YA topics like suicide and social stature. As I read on, it didn’t really get better. One thing about introverts is that we don’t say much, but we put a lot of weight in what we do say. That means we act with integrity when we speak. No hemming or hawing. No lies. And we have a dedication to the truth, to the point of correcting others just to have something to say. Evan Hansen doesn’t act like this. He picks up an idiot ball and runs with it to the end of the novel.
In fact, I might say that this is the quintessential YA novel. But that’s not a good thing. I mean that in the sense that this book throws all the typical ingredients in the pot and what comes out is pizza. You can’t really ruin pizza, but you can make it unexciting. Just another reheated concoction that everyone else makes.
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It’s as cliche as the “bully” trope (which this book also has). But the problem is… it works. He feels like I felt back then, struggling to break out of a shell, anxious and depressed all the time. I can’t imagine how easy it is to stay in your fortress after cable modems and wireless connections. But I’m digressing.There are typical YA topics like suicide and social stature. As I read on, it didn’t really get better. One thing about introverts is that we don’t say much, but we put a lot of weight in what we do say. That means we act with integrity when we speak. No hemming or hawing. No lies. And we have a dedication to the truth, to the point of correcting others just to have something to say. Evan Hansen doesn’t act like this. He picks up an idiot ball and runs with it to the end of the novel.
In fact, I might say that this is the quintessential YA novel. But that’s not a good thing. I mean that in the sense that this book throws all the typical ingredients in the pot and what comes out is pizza. You can’t really ruin pizza, but you can make it unexciting. Just another reheated concoction that everyone else makes.
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LibraryThing member Carolesrandomlife
I didn't love this one like I had hoped I would. To be fair, I am not the target audience for this book. I have never seen the musical or heard any of its songs so I was pretty clueless going in. I can't tell you how this book compares to the musical but this story does stand on its own. Maybe a
It all starts with a letter. Evan doesn't have really any friends and has a hard time getting through each day. As a part of therapy, he writes letters to himself to put things in a positive outlook. Connor picks up the letter and takes it from Evan. He dies with that letter in his pocket and suddenly everyone thinks that Connor and Evan were great friends and everything grows from there.
One of my biggest pet peeves is lying of any kind. Unfortunately, this book is packed with lies. Instead of letting Connor's parents know the truth behind the letter he lets them think that he was really friends with Connor. He then proceeds to expand on that lie and becomes a big part of Connor's family's life. He even starts dating Connor's sister whom he has had a crush on for a very long time. Almost everything that Evan does in this book is a lie or is tied to a lie and I have to tell you that I had some issues with it. I just felt like Connor's family had enough to deal with without being manipulated by Evan.
There were some things that I did like in this book. I liked that the story is told from two different points of view. I expected Evan's point of view but the second one was a bit of a surprise. The point of view that I didn't expect was really my favorite part of the book. I thought that those sections of the book were very well done.
I listened to this book and I thought that the narrators did a good job with it. The female narrator listed did a couple of song segments worked into the story and the males handled the two points of view. I thought that they both did a great job representing their character. Their voices were very pleasant to listen to for long periods of time. I think that I liked the story a bit more because I decided to listen to the audiobook.
I think that a lot of readers are going to like this book a lot more than I did. The book does touch on a lot of important issues but I couldn't get past all of the deceptions.
I received a digital review copy of this book from Little, Brown Books for Young Readers via NetGalley and borrowed a copy of the audiobook from my local library via Overdrive.
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younger audience will enjoy this one more than I did but I spent a large part of the book wanted to pull these kids to the side and give them a mom talk. It was a pretty easy read and I am glad I gave it a try.It all starts with a letter. Evan doesn't have really any friends and has a hard time getting through each day. As a part of therapy, he writes letters to himself to put things in a positive outlook. Connor picks up the letter and takes it from Evan. He dies with that letter in his pocket and suddenly everyone thinks that Connor and Evan were great friends and everything grows from there.
One of my biggest pet peeves is lying of any kind. Unfortunately, this book is packed with lies. Instead of letting Connor's parents know the truth behind the letter he lets them think that he was really friends with Connor. He then proceeds to expand on that lie and becomes a big part of Connor's family's life. He even starts dating Connor's sister whom he has had a crush on for a very long time. Almost everything that Evan does in this book is a lie or is tied to a lie and I have to tell you that I had some issues with it. I just felt like Connor's family had enough to deal with without being manipulated by Evan.
There were some things that I did like in this book. I liked that the story is told from two different points of view. I expected Evan's point of view but the second one was a bit of a surprise. The point of view that I didn't expect was really my favorite part of the book. I thought that those sections of the book were very well done.
I listened to this book and I thought that the narrators did a good job with it. The female narrator listed did a couple of song segments worked into the story and the males handled the two points of view. I thought that they both did a great job representing their character. Their voices were very pleasant to listen to for long periods of time. I think that I liked the story a bit more because I decided to listen to the audiobook.
I think that a lot of readers are going to like this book a lot more than I did. The book does touch on a lot of important issues but I couldn't get past all of the deceptions.
I received a digital review copy of this book from Little, Brown Books for Young Readers via NetGalley and borrowed a copy of the audiobook from my local library via Overdrive.
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LibraryThing member lflareads
Wow! Pulled at my heartstrings. This is a novel full of reminders that we never truly know what others are going through, Kindness and empathy are so important!
LibraryThing member GretchenLynn
I've listened to the soundtrack for the musical a few times and like a couple of songs, but haven't heard it enough to piece together the story. It's a tough book to read in the sense that it deals with a lot of heavy topics - from suicide to severe anxiety to lying and having life consequences for
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actions, to basic high school drama. Show Less
LibraryThing member snickel63
I enjoyed this book because it shows what it is like for teens who may have anxiety or may feel like they don’t belong. It was a sad premise, but overall there were some great moments. Evan Hansen was put in a tough spot and I couldn’t have done what he did, but it made me feel like I was there
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deciding with him on his choices. Show Less
LibraryThing member readingbeader
Lies, upon lies, even for a "good" cause, are still lies.
LibraryThing member thoroughlyme
I'm on the record as not being a particularly big fan of the musical Dear Evan Hansen. I always found Evan to be a super unlikable character (what with the whole lying to a grieving family for the entirety of the musical thing) and so that made it a bit hard to fully connect with the, admittedly
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interesting, plot. But my bigger problem with the musical was the songs. I just didn't like them. They didn't work for me. They didn't feel like they were serving the story and they just sorta brought everything down. So, when I saw that Hachette Book Group was publishing a novelization of the musical, I figured I'd give it a shot. I did like the plot of the musical, and novels often make even the most unlikable character sympathetic in ways that more visual mediums aren't able to. I'm happy to report that while Val Emmich's novelization of the musical still has that one pretty big flaw in relation to Evan as a character, the novel is far more enjoyable than the musical is.This book is a really good, engaging, quick read. It takes a little bit of time to fully hook you into the story, but once it does, you won't want to put it down. There are two major things about this novel that make it better than the musical, for me. The first is the way the story is told. Emmich utilizes a first-person point of view for the prose, literally taking us into Evan's mind as he experiences the events of the story. The musical does this, too, to a degree, but a visual medium can never take us as deeply into the mind of a character as a novel can. While many of the things that make Evan so unlikable (and unrelatable) to me are still present in the book, they're softened a bit by the prose. Emmich does a great job at capturing just how debilitating anxiety can be. How it can feel like something pressing against your chest so hard that it feels like you can't breathe. How you can slip so far down a spiral just by doing (or thinking about) one small thing. While I still can't remotely identify (or sympathize) with Evan's actions in the novel as they relate to literally lying to Connor's family, the prose does help you see his point-of-view and understand why and how he's gotten himself into this situation. The other major thing about the novel that elevates it above its source material is the inclusion of a series of interludes from Connor's point-of-view. They're all set after his death and feature Connor witnessing and reacting to various things in the novel. We find out a lot about Connor through this selection of short interludes. They make up maybe 10% of the book, but they're honestly the best parts of the book. Connor is way more likable than Evan is and it's so nice getting a brief insight into his mind, even if it's after he's dead.
Like I've mentioned, the novel still has a lot of the problems that the musical has. Thankfully, next to nothing related to the songs from the musical is present in the novel. There are a few bits where I think they're quoting or referencing a lyric, but they make sense in the context of the novel and it's not at all distracting. However, the bigger problem is Evan Hansen. While I (and many others) can relate to his anxiety, his feelings of loneliness, and a lot of his other characteristics, the part that always loses me (and many others) is the way his lie is portrayed. Both the stage show and the novel say his lie is an awful thing, but it seems like they never wanna actually prove that. He's not punished at all for it (though the epilogue of the novel does show how the aftermath of his confession has eaten away at his mind some) and so it rings a bit hollow. Yes, he loses Zoe and the comfort of the Murphy family, but he also gains his relationship with his mother back and essentially loses nothing else. The musical and the novel both paint his lie as something that ultimately brought the Murphy family closer together, which, sure, I can see how it did that, but wow does that seem to be a watering-down of how utterly traumatizing it must have been too. It's really hard to root for a lead character who spends the entirety of the novel literally lying to the grieving family of a dead kid that he's pretending he was friends with.
While I feel like there are elements of the musical (and the novel) that do a lot of good for mental health awareness, I feel like Evan's actions really reflect negatively on those with similar disorders to his. Most people with anxiety and/or depression would never do something like he did. Most people with anxiety and/or depression just do their best to get by, mostly trying to be kind to others and all that jazz. I can see why people identify with Evan's struggles because aside from the whole lying to a grieving family thing, his struggles are really relatable. I just worry that the fact that Evan never gets any kind of real comeuppance for his actions is a bad message that overshadows the really good message of the story. Yes, nobody should ever feel alone. Everyone should feel like life is worth living and that things will get better. Much of this novel (and the musical it's based on) are devoted to that idea, and the idea of the Connor Murphy Project is probably the best thing to come out of Evan's lie. The thing is, it's an equally important message that you shouldn't do half the stuff Evan does in this story. You shouldn't lie to a family for months. He should have come clean immediately before he did so much damage. He should've been punished in some way for it. Or, at least, more time should have been devoted to him dealing with the aftermath of coming clean about it so that that point could have been gotten across. I mean, I'm not looking to see his life get ruined by this (as I think that would also dilute the nice message of "things getting better" that the novel and musical are trying to present), but I do think there should have been more of an acknowledgment as to how awful what Evan did was. As it is, it just sort of feels like the novel (and the musical) is waving it away, trying to whitewash it as much as possible so that Evan still feels relatable and not like an awful person. But here's the thing: if you do an awful thing, it's not excused by the fact that you have a mental illness. The novel (and the musical) seem to try to excuse Evan's behavior with his anxiety, but it doesn't work that way. I wish that aspect was better communicated through the novel.
At the end of the day, Dear Evan Hansen is still a really good story. Yes, the main character is super unlikable and does a pretty despicable thing (and is never really punished for it), but the journey of the story is a really interesting one. Even with all its problems, the book is still a really good examination of what living with anxiety is like. The additions it makes to its source material are welcome ones and make the story far more engaging than it was on stage. It's not a difficult read and Evan does feel like a real person, which is always important for these first-person YA novels to pull off. If you liked the musical, you'll like the book; it takes everything that was good about the musical and makes it better. If you didn't like the musical, I'd encourage you to give the book a try anyway. You still might not like it, but, on the flip side, you might end up like me, someone who doesn't like or sympathize with Evan at all and really dislikes the music from the musical, but enjoys the plot of the musical enough to really get into the book. It's super flawed and leaves a lot to be desired, but I enjoyed it well enough.
3.5 wands out of 5.
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LibraryThing member Jonez
2.75
At its worst, Connors suicide is a plot device and Connor himself is a prop.
At its best it is commentary on how you can never really know someone. How the awkward kid can both be sad, struggling to make it through and an opportunist. How Connor could be something more than his actions. How
The problem is Connor stayed surface level. So I'm afraid, in many ways, the former is the truth that stands out the most.
I liked the idea. I liked that it made me think. Unfortunately the execution left a bad taste in my mouth.
At its worst, Connors suicide is a plot device and Connor himself is a prop.
At its best it is commentary on how you can never really know someone. How the awkward kid can both be sad, struggling to make it through and an opportunist. How Connor could be something more than his actions. How
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social media can make us think we know those answers when we don't, because it's all so surface level. That there is so much commonality in our differences. The problem is Connor stayed surface level. So I'm afraid, in many ways, the former is the truth that stands out the most.
I liked the idea. I liked that it made me think. Unfortunately the execution left a bad taste in my mouth.
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Pages
368