On the morning of September 11, 2001, sixteen-year-old Kyle Donohue watches the first twin tower come down from the window of Stuyvesant High School. Moments later, terrified and fleeing home to safety across the Brooklyn Bridge, he stumbles across a girl perched in the shadows. She is covered in ash and wearing a pair of costume wings. With his mother and sister in California and unable to reach his father, a New York City detective likely on his way to the disaster, Kyle makes the split-second decision to bring the girl home. What follows is their story, told in alternating points of view, as Kyle tries to unravel the mystery of the girl so he can return her to her family. But what if the girl has forgotten everything, even her own name? And what if the more Kyle gets to know her, the less he wants her to go home? The Memory of Things tells a stunning story of friendship and first love and of carrying on with our day-to-day living in the midst of world-changing tragedy and unforgettable pain—it tells a story of hope.@goodreads
MY REVIEW:
4 STARS
On the day of 9/11, Kyle is trying to hurry home to Brooklyn. They let out school so everyone can try to get home. On the way he sees a girl looking over the bridge. He thinks she's going to jump. He grabs her arm and makes her come with him. She's wearing white angel wings.
The story is written in two different views. One from Kyle and the other from the girl which is written in bits and pieces. Fragments of memories she can't quite grasp. She doesn't even know her name. She feels like she's falling apart, but doesn't know why.
Kyle does the best he can for a teenager. He has a girl to take care of that can't remember anything. An uncle that was in a accident and pretty much paralyzed. His dad is in the middle of the chaos trying to find survivors. His mom and sister are stuck in another state. So it's up to Kyle to take care of all three of them all the while worrying about what it is going to happen to his dad.
Kyle finally gets the girl to talking and watching tv. He gets her to eat and she seems to get along great with Kyle's uncle. And slowly, over time, with Kyle's help and the tv, she remembers who she is and it's pretty heartbreaking.
This is a beautifully, sad story about coming of age in a world that has went so wrong. The strengths that each person has to go through and help others. The fear of no seeing family members again. Many, many fears.
I thought this was a heartfelt book and I loved all of the characters. They were beautifully written and I cared for each one of them.
*I would like to thank Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.*
And we will never forget
GOODREADS REVIEW:
AMAZON LINK TO THE BOOK:
Great review Melissa! This one looks and sounds absolutely beautiful and sad at the same time. Thank you for sharing this new book that I never heard of until now and for your awesome post my friend.
ReplyDeleteYour very welcome my dear friend. This book is a really good, emotional book. I hope you enjoy it. Thank you so much for being so kind and commenting on my reviews ♥
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