What do you think?
Rate this book
To Know Her
How well do we know our families and friends? When their eighteen-year old daughter, Juliana, lies in a coma as a result of a car accident, Will and Susan Talbot are given her clothes and belongings. As they sort through everything, Will and Susan discover a daughter different from the one they thought they knew. Letters, notebooks, cell phone, and odd items that may or may not have meaning—some confirm what they already know about Juliana, while others mystify or disturb them. In addition to dealing with the hidden sides of their daughter, Will and Susan face the mounting tension of when—or if—to withdraw life support, as Juliana’s chances of recovery fade.
224 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 11, 2014
17 people are currently reading
48 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
May 28, 2022
To Know Her by Mary Ann Noe is an interesting and emotional portrayal of one family in crisis and how each copes with the unknown.
Juliana Talbot is preparing to graduate from high school. Her prospects are looking good. She has a handsome and kind boyfriend who respects her and, though she does not get accepted at the college he is going to, they plan to keep in touch. They are in love and want to spend the rest of their lives together. Tragedy strikes and it is all taken away from them.
Juliana's parents, Will and Susan Talbot, spend one, agonizing week visiting her in the hospital as she lays in a coma on life support. The daily trials of each individual who visits her bedside are never so profound as those her parents face. Juliana's uncertain future impacts their own as they seek to maneuver the difficult road ahead without destroying one another and their marriage in the process.
Juliana's best friend, Katie, is gifted with an insight that brings it all to resolution. One key person, Juliana's boyfriend, is summoned to her bedside, where the painful reality of all their futures is then made clear.
Using each chapter as a way to tell each person's story, the reader gets a view of things the characters, themselves, are not able to have. We see Juliana's respect for her parents, her love of her boyfriend, and loyalty to her friend. Events in her life are marked by the many odds and ends later examined by her parents, who begin to realize, as parents often do, that they do not really know their daughter. She is who she has always been, a good girl, a good friend, and a good person, but the objects Will and Susan are left with, bring doubt and mistrust into play.
An excellent examination into the psychology and intimate dynamics between husband and wife faced with the loss of their only child. It shows there are no easy answers in life, only the best ones we can muster in the moment. Both tender and brutal, Will and Susan willingly enter those dark woods where Juliana has already gone, leaving the reader with their own uncertainty, hoping they will all survive.
Juliana Talbot is preparing to graduate from high school. Her prospects are looking good. She has a handsome and kind boyfriend who respects her and, though she does not get accepted at the college he is going to, they plan to keep in touch. They are in love and want to spend the rest of their lives together. Tragedy strikes and it is all taken away from them.
Juliana's parents, Will and Susan Talbot, spend one, agonizing week visiting her in the hospital as she lays in a coma on life support. The daily trials of each individual who visits her bedside are never so profound as those her parents face. Juliana's uncertain future impacts their own as they seek to maneuver the difficult road ahead without destroying one another and their marriage in the process.
Juliana's best friend, Katie, is gifted with an insight that brings it all to resolution. One key person, Juliana's boyfriend, is summoned to her bedside, where the painful reality of all their futures is then made clear.
Using each chapter as a way to tell each person's story, the reader gets a view of things the characters, themselves, are not able to have. We see Juliana's respect for her parents, her love of her boyfriend, and loyalty to her friend. Events in her life are marked by the many odds and ends later examined by her parents, who begin to realize, as parents often do, that they do not really know their daughter. She is who she has always been, a good girl, a good friend, and a good person, but the objects Will and Susan are left with, bring doubt and mistrust into play.
An excellent examination into the psychology and intimate dynamics between husband and wife faced with the loss of their only child. It shows there are no easy answers in life, only the best ones we can muster in the moment. Both tender and brutal, Will and Susan willingly enter those dark woods where Juliana has already gone, leaving the reader with their own uncertainty, hoping they will all survive.
September 6, 2022
This is a heartbreaking story of parents trying to rectify what they know about their teenage daughter while sifting through her belongings. All this while balancing the hope for recovery against the impending decision to remove life support. Prepare to ugly cry. Having lost a best friend at a young age, I understand the friend’s perspective all too well, but I was given an appreciation for the parents’ anguish through this story. While not completely filling out the characters, we are left asking ourselves, how well do we really know our loved ones?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 22, 2022
Such a meaningful story. I like the way it was written- with alternating timelines. The author walked us through the struggle the parents went through to make the right decision, while letting us know who the young woman in a coma had been.
January 30, 2023
Grief, grief, grief! Love, love, love!
August 9, 2023
Beautiful
A very sad but lovely book. Thoroughly talked us through the heartfelt feelings and emotions of all the wonderful characters.
A very sad but lovely book. Thoroughly talked us through the heartfelt feelings and emotions of all the wonderful characters.
February 17, 2023
I liked this book a lot
but I didn't love it. As a retired cardiology nurse, I've been in situations where families had to make the decision to pull the plug" and it;s never easy, whether the person is a senior or a teenager, as Juliana is in this book. I can identify a b8t with the parents, the best friend, the boyfriend, but somehow it just didn't ring true and I can't tell you why. I felt sad for everyone, especially the prents, but from a distance.
but I didn't love it. As a retired cardiology nurse, I've been in situations where families had to make the decision to pull the plug" and it;s never easy, whether the person is a senior or a teenager, as Juliana is in this book. I can identify a b8t with the parents, the best friend, the boyfriend, but somehow it just didn't ring true and I can't tell you why. I felt sad for everyone, especially the prents, but from a distance.
March 7, 2023
0,5*
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews