Tell Me Something Real

by Calla Devlin

Three sisters struggle with the bonds that hold their family together as they face a darkness settling over their lives in this masterfully written debut novel.

There are three beautiful blond Babcock sisters: gorgeous and foul-mouthed Adrienne, observant and shy Vanessa, and the youngest and best-loved, Marie. Their mother is ill with leukemia and the girls spend a lot of time with her at a Mexican clinic across the border from their San Diego home so she can receive alternative treatments.

Vanessa is the middle child, a talented pianist who is trying to hold her family together despite the painful loss that they all know is inevitable. As she and her sisters navigate first loves and college dreams, they are completely unaware that an illness far more insidious than cancer poisons their home. Their world is about to shatter under the weight of an incomprehensible betrayal…

Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Romance, Historical Fiction, Mental Health

304 pages, Unknown Binding

First published August 30, 2016

About the author

Calla Devlin is the author of Tell Me Something Real, a finalist for the PEN Literary Award, finalist for the William C. Morris Debut Award, and International Literacy Literary Award Honor, and Right Where You Left Me. A Pushcart nominee and winner of the Best of Blood and Thunder Award, her stories have been included in numerous literary journals and anthologies.

Reviews

[Larry H · Rating 4 out of 5]

The beautiful, blonde Babcock sisters—brash, confident, artistic Adrienne; sensitive, musical Vanessa; and the youngest, devoutly religious Marie—are growing up in San Diego in 1976. The Babcocks struggle with the same problems many families do—their father works too much and gets bullied by his boss, Vanessa doesn't practice the piano as much as she should, and Adrienne spends a little too much time mouthing off.

But what sets the Babcocks apart is sadness. Their mother has leukemia, and her decline is taking its toll on their family. The girls spend much of their time with their mother at a small clinic across the border in Mexico, where she frequently receives a controversial alternative treatment that doctors in the U.S. aren't allowed to prescribe. While the girls enjoy their time at the clinic, and have found themselves woven into the fabric of its daily life, they hate to see their mother suffering, and even though they know her time is short, they can't picture life without her.

At the clinic they meet Barb, a woman who has befriended their mother while her teenage son, Caleb, receives the same alternative treatment their mother does. Barb and Caleb move into the Babcocks' house, and it isn't long before she has taken control of the unruly, disoriented household, bringing organization and emotional steadiness into the chaos. Caleb awakens feelings in Vanessa she never imagined feeling, and all she wants is to be with him, and worries about his health despite being in remission.

"I learned from Mom that each word is a risk. It takes a certain amount of courage to converse, especially when one of the primary topics of conversation is terminal illness."

As their mother enters what everyone believes will be her last days, their lives are turned upside down. Everything they had depended upon they begin to question, and they wonder what kind of answers they want, and what they will mean for their future. Vanessa, in particular, is torn between her love for her family and her desire to leave home to study at a prestigious music conservatory, but she is unsure she can leave everyone, including Caleb, to pursue the one thing which brings her joy.

I'm being deliberately vague because I don't want to give away one plot twist that Calla Devlin so deftly slips into this book. Knowing it might not affect your enjoyment of the story, but it was nice to be surprised. Tell Me Something Real is an emotionally compelling story of a family in crisis, missing their emotional rudder yet unsure if they'll ever regain their momentum. At the same time, it's a story of the jumble of emotions that accompanies first love, and how we hope the things and the people we care for most can help complete us.

As you might imagine from a book about a family dealing with terminal illness, at times the book veers dangerously close to melodrama, but for the most part Devlin keeps a steady hand on her story. She's a terrific writer and even if you don't get to know all of the characters as well as you get to know Vanessa, who is the heart (and voice) of the book, you can see the immense thought she has put in to all aspects of her story. This is a moving and affecting read, and although it is classified as YA fiction (not that that is a bad thing), it definitely didn't feel that way.

See all of my reviews at http://itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blo....

[Elyse Walters · Rating 5 out of 5]

"It was like I had to pretend that I wasn't sick to make them feel okay".

"Sometimes we have to wait, especially when things are difficult and a lot is happening at once". This is why I needed time to tell you about......"

A STRONG 5 STARS!!!!
The entire novel is great....
.....complex surprising 'substantial' storyline. It's not a story with an explosive beginning...yet the our minds start spinning and forming opinions right away about the characters. As soon as you think you know the basic 'theme' of this novel...the rug is pulled out from under you.

This is a bold, enigmatic, thought-provoking novel. It's brilliantly crafted ...designed to make you think. My husband happened to have some of my favorite schmaltzy easy rock top 100 hits - music playing in the background while I was deep into this novel...( wild horses wouldn't pull me away)... but between the music and a couple of sections I was reading....my face was sopping wet from tears. I was trying 'not' to cry ... 'not' to feel....It kinda hurt.
However, that's me...I'm guessing most people won't cry at all. I was extremely sensitive about a couple scenes -- which I rather not say in a public review.
other than truthfully ... with all my heart... I'm glad I read this book!!! Nobody can take a readers deep personal intimate experience away. This book touched me on many levels.

I mostly recommend this to my close female friends: adults and mature teens....( a few men too)...In fact...I'm very impressed of the type of male characters in this book.... especially with Caleb, a young adult male teen.

Thank You. Atheneum Books for Young Readers, and Calla Devlin ( terrific debut)

[Book Riot Community]

This story is so incredibly specific that it completely sucked me in. From the details about the characters to the time to the setting everything felt real and captivating. The story follows the three blond, beautiful Babcock sisters through a San Diego summer in 1976. Their mother is dying of leukemia and travels, with them, to Mexico often to receive an experimental treatment. I thought I’d fall in love with the story because of the sister relationship (definitely my genre kryptonite!), but instead the lyrical writing and tightly controlled plot twists became my favorite. There is also a very swoon-worthy romance. I’m not sure if you can call a book set in 1976 historical fiction, but I’m loving the trend in YA to tell stories in the more recent past.

–Alison Doherty


from The Best Books We Read In October 2016: http://bookriot.com/2016/10/31/riot-r...
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At first you think this is a novel about three beautiful sisters helping their sick mother as she is treated for cancer, narrated by the middle sister. BUT THEN IT TURNS INTO SOMETHING ELSE. Explaining it would give it away, so let me just say: READ IT, READ IT, READ IT! This book is another example, like A.S. King novels, where I feel books shouldn’t be labeled as ‘young adult’ but ‘books for humans’ instead. PS – Don’t forget tissues.


Backlist bump: The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown

[maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

This ARC was provided by Simon and Schuster Canada in exchange for an honest review.

Tell Me Something Real by Calla Devlin is one of those books that would have completely flown right by my radar if I hadn’t been offered the opportunity to read and review it through Simon and Schuster Canada. I had never heard of this novel previously, but the synopsis totally had me intrigued and I just knew that I had to read it.

STORY LINE/CONCEPT

Tell Me Something Real tells the story of three sisters who are struggling to take care of their mother who is living with leukaemia. The girls and their mother travel back and forth between California and Mexico, where there is an experimental drug known as Laetrile that treats cancer, but isn’t legal in the United States. Their father is a workaholic, with a terrible boss, which makes it difficult to be there with his wife and daughters. Tell Me Something Real explores the relationship between each of these family members as they deal with their lives. Of course, there are many hidden secrets, and an ultimate betrayal, that will change this family forever.

WORLD/SETTING

Tell Me Something Real takes place in the 1970’s, not too long after the Vietnam war has ended. As stated earlier, the girls and their mother travel back and forth between their cozy home in California to a clinic in Mexico. There is a new drug on the scene known as Laetrile that is said to treat those who have cancer, but it isn’t scientifically proven to be true, making it illegal in the United States. I did a little bit of research as I was reading just to familiarize myself a little about Laetrile and I learned that it is a modified form of amygdalin, a poisonous cyanogenic glycoside that can be found in many plants. It can be potentially toxic or lethal when taken by mouth, due to cyanide poisoning. After reading all about that, I thought I knew where this book might be going, but I was completely wrong. There are twists and turns throughout this book that hit me in the face as if I ran straight into a brick wall. I didn’t see any of them coming and that was one aspect of this book that I thought was fantastic!

CHARACTERS

Tell Me Something Real is told from the perspective of Vanessa, the middle child of the three Babcock sisters. Adrienne being the oldest and Marie the youngest. Of the three, Vanessa is the most shy and timid. Adrienne is very in-your-face and confrontational. Marie is still the innocent baby of the group. Tell Me Something Real does a fantastic job in showcasing the family dynamic and relationship between the three sisters and how they all cope with their ill mother. While in Mexico, the girls meet a teenaged boy, named Caleb, who is also travelling from America in order to receive Laetrile treatments. The Babcock family eventually take in Caleb and his mother so that their trips back and forth are quicker and easier. As the story is told from Vanessa’s perspective, we learn more about her and her ambitions. We learn that she is a very talented pianist who had plans to apply to prestigious conservatories before her mother became sick. Tell Me Something Real does a great job in exploring the moral dilemma that Vanessa must deal with. Does she stay behind and help her sisters in caring for their mother, or does she continue with her dreams of becoming a professional pianist? Once a terrible secret is revealed, it becomes even harder for Vanessa to make this decision.

WRITING STYLE

The story is told from the single perspective of Vanessa. As much as I love stories that are told from multiple perspectives, I think that the single perspective worked really well here. I felt as times that there was too much going on within Tell Me Something Real. There was the family dynamic, a mother dealing with cancer, a teen dealing with the decision to pursue her career in music, a teen experiencing her first love, and of course, there was that huge twist that completely turned this book upside down. While I loved this story, I think there were parts that maybe could have been left out. As much as I enjoyed learning about Vanessa and her passion for music, there was just so much going on that I’m not sure if it really added anything substantial to the story itself. Tell Me Something Real could have been just a strong by dealing with just the family and its experience with cancer and the twist that changed everything. Other than that, Tell Me Something Real was fast paced and exciting and I had a hard time putting it down.

—

Overall, Tell Me Something Real was such a pleasant surprise for me. As I mentioned, I had never heard of it prior to being asked to read and review it. I’m so glad that I was because it ended up being quite the wonderful, shocking and touching read!

--

Initial post reading thoughts:

This one tripped me out. There were twists and there were turns. I saw none of them coming.

[Kelly]

I was really liking this at the beginning. The writing is lovely and lush, and the girls are depicted well. But immediately, I wondered...why is this set in the 1970s? And when the twist of the story emerged, suddenly the reason for that time period made sense and pissed me off as a reader who hates the use of time periods where technology allows things to go ~unexplained~ for so long . I felt cheated and it was a cheap choice in writing.

After the twist and putting those pieces together, the more I was angered and just wanted to finish the book to see if it would turn around. But, not really. There's nothing fresh or exciting here, and when we get the diagnosis of Munchausen's and the mother never, ever has a role again, it was even more frustrating. Suddenly she's evil and terrible and while that sort of belief about mental illness was true in the 1970s, it was super uninteresting and, again, frustrating to me as a reader who felt the time period added nothing except convenience.

Would have been so much better, stronger, more compelling, and a powerhouse if it were set in today's time. So much more to dig into, without the convenience of avoiding technology.

The romance was totally uninteresting and flat. The choice to have this family randomly stay in their home -- an idea of the mother's -- was weird, unexplained, and especially unsettled at the end of the book when they return. If the mother was as terrible as they believed, why would they continue to follow her idea? I don't get it, except it was sure easy to bring Vanessa and Caleb, your typical annoying boy obsessed with Jack Kerouac and ON THE ROAD, back together.

A small, but also irritating, detail: the book describes how the girls were the talk of the town, how neighbors thought they were weird and deranged.

We literally never once see this.

Never.

There is one scene where the girls leave school on the last day where the mothers of the kindergarteners look at them sadly, since they have a sick mother, but otherwise, nada. When were the neighbors calling them brats? They weren't.

I dunno. The longer I think about the book, the more frustrated I get. I feel like you could drive a semi through the conveniences and the plot holes.

[Yodamom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Emotional Hell Ride.
That sums up this read for me. I was dragged down one road sobbing and heart broken only to be slammed into the wall of extreme anger, disbelief and then sorrow. I devoured this torturous read in one day. I couldn't leave the story at any point, it left me dangling off a cliff through the whole book. I read this yesterday, today I feel hungover and tired. The daily pain of these characters lives was draining. Then to find out.... I tell you it was so twisted. I wanted to throw my book off a bridge and watch it sink to the bottom of the sea.
Did I like it ? No, and yes. I don't care to suffer in realistic pain and suffering in my entertainment choice, books. I read to escape reality. This was realistic and it tore me into little soaked bits of don't want to go there, but it was so good. I loved, hated it. I'm glad it was recommended to me by a reviewer friend or I never would have touched it.
Emotional Rollercoater E Ticket Turbo Ride
Don't read reviews with spoilers. You need to experience this shock to get the most out of the author's work.

[Aj the Ravenous Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely something you don't read everyday, how the three sisters endure a life where their mom is chronically sick and their father practically absent because of work. It's a quiet literary YA fiction, sometimes a little too quiet for my taste and the narrative a bit unemotional and the reason why I could not give it more stars. There is a surprising twist in the plot which of course I couldn't give away. But it's a unique, thought provoking and bold debut novel by the author.

[Nadine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tell Me Something Real is a story about coping. Coping as an individual and coping within the family. The book is told from Vanessa’s perspective, the middle child to a mother dying of leukemia forced to manage responsibilities she shouldn’t have to manage at her age.

At the beginning of the book, I thought it was going to be a knock off of The Fault in our Star by John Green. Both stories have similar elements: cancer, overly mature young adults, and a budding romance. However, Tell Me Something Real turned out to be a very different story (explaining this further would result in my spoiling the book).

What I liked most about this book is the focus on coping methods. Every person has different coping methods and this is highlighted thoroughly through each of the sisters. The youngest sister, Marie, becomes fixated on religious saints, Vanessa drowns herself in her musical abilities, and the eldest, Adrienne, begins drawing. They each try to figure out their position in the world and how to deal with what’s happened to them through their relationships with each other and their various talents. It was refreshing to read about healthy coping methods for a change.

Another interesting aspect of this book is the topic of parents’ ability to care for their children and what happens when they fail. When I speak about failing, I don’t mean losing custody of the children, but of failing to protect them emotionally, spiritually, and physically. Their father fails in many ways throughout the book and we watch as each of the girls deal with his failures in different ways. It’s a devastating moment to realize parents aren’t infallible and even harder to cope with. Tell Me Something Real offers different perspectives of dealing with this failure despite it only being told from one character’s perspective.

Overall, Tell Me Something Real is a beautifully heart wrenching story about coping, grief, failure, and moving forward. It begins similarly to The Fault in our Stars, but turns into something much different that you won’t be disappointed to have read.


**I received this book in exchange for an honest review.

--------

All I'll say for now is that this book was much more than I thought it would be. If, after reading the synopsis, you feel like this book is going to be a typical coping with loss story, you are thoroughly mistaken.
I will post my full review closer to the release date, August 30, 2016.

[Brenda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tell Me Something Real is a good book, but ultimately forgettable. I never felt particularly affectionate toward any of our character, especially Caleb. I (as usual) did not fall for the instalove between Caleb and Vanessa, and even less so when I realized that Caleb was supposed to be Vanessa's rock in the typhoon of her life.

I liked the twist and normally would have been gushing about it in my review, but it felt too detached. I didn't feel like Vanessa was actually experiencing what was supposed to be so traumatic, like it was always once removed from her and the rest of her family. THIS BIG THING is revealed and then it's only referred to in conversation, never actively experienced. It made it weird and not seem real.

Adrienne was annoying, too. Volatile and strong-willed I understand, but she would get irrationally angry over stupid things. It made it hard for me to root for her or to feel any sympathy, which makes me a giant jerk but whatever.

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Many of my GR friends raved about this one.

.......Ugh. I was bored. Abandon ship??

But my GR friends REALLY liked it. Stay on ship!

.......YES! It turned around, picked up & smacked me in the face. (In a good way). My GR friends never let me down. ❤️

[Lolly K Dandeneau · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I feel like a scavenger, a young raccoon, rummaging for scraps of motherly affection."

The three Babcock sisters are coping with their mother’s illness in different ways. For the vibrant beautiful outspoken Adrienne, pious, sweet little Marie and quietly shy Vanessa everything they thought they knew about their long suffering mother’s disease is going to wither and fall away when she decides to help a fellow cancer patient Caleb. When Caleb and his mother move in, it is a welcome change from the responsibilities that once consumed the girls. Finally, each can focus on just being young, Caleb and his mother are like sunshine on the darkest of days! Vanessa is in the throes of first love, but her mother’s illness may darken the future she is hungry for. Their father is absent, busy with so many hours at work- depending on the girls to accompany their mother to a Mexican clinic for her controversial treatment. Sometimes it’s convenient not to see what is happening before your very eyes, and sometimes it takes an outsider to expose the fractures in your family.

When I first started reading, I thought “oh it’s going to be so sad, mother dying of cancer, children’s heart breaking slowly” but what happens shocked me, only to make me realize it was a shadow from the beginning- there to be seen if you just paid attention.` We are all fools, aren’t we, in our own unique ways? It’s hard not to talk about what happens, because it will give the entire story away- but there is so much I wish I could reveal and rattle on about. The girls are suffering, that never changes, their hearts are bursting with pain but not in the way you imagined.

Book clubs will have a heck of a time discussing this one. I truly enjoyed it, I think the love story wasn’t the point but it was an anchor for Vanessa, who so desperately needed one. I wasn’t reviewing this, just kept hearing people loved it and thought ‘ why not?’ I was angry and sad with everything that happened. Felt outraged alongside the girls and admit, I was surprised. Not your usual story!

Out now

[Trang Tran · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novel completely surprises me in a very good and unexpected way. And somehow relate to me personnally too. We follow the Babcok sisters, three beautiful blonde girls with different personalities who are trying to cope with their mother's growing leukemia.

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The whole story is about coping, an important theme that is being dissected in this novel and the reason why I think EVERYONE should read it. Vanessa is the middle child and also the narrator-it gives a childish voice to the story and even more emphasis on how children see certain difficult situations. How they cope with it as individual but also as a group, hence the sister's dynamism.

Full review on my blog here : https://bookidote.wordpress.com/2016/...

Trang- Book Blogger and Book Reviewer
http://bookidote.wordpress.com

[Alice · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beware, this book is not what you're expecting, this is not just a YA novel regarding cancer coping. A lot more happens and not one of you will see it coming. Not gonna say anymore to avoid spooling it.
The idea behind this book has sooo much potential, could have easily reached a higher rating which it sadly didn't because of the instant-love and unlikely proceedings.
I really liked the characters though, the sisters are really fun and I love their interactions. This book reminded me an awful lot of TFIOS right at the beginning but the love story here is nowhere close to being compared to that of Gus and Hazel.
Nonetheless it was an easy and enjoyable read and I know loads of you YA lovers will go crazy for it when it comes out.
(Although I still have to say it could have been developed way better with just a little more depth and variety of events)

[Susanchitter · Rating 4 out of 5]

It seems at first like Fault of the Stars but the twists and turns transform the story line. The family of three girls are coping with their mother's cancer and their father's need to work at a time when they should be enjoying a childhood. I read it in a day, could not but it down.

[Kenya | Reviews May Vary · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 I'm so glad this turned out to be more than the first love romance between this girl and her sick boyfriend. I'm glad I got over the hump. But it's one of those books you really can't think too deeply about.

[jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

From reading the inside cover I wasn't surprised at all by the twist, but I enjoyed this book nonetheless.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really loved this book! I listened to the audiobook from the library because the eArc has been on my shelf for for over 3 years. This is the story of Vanessa, her two sisters, her sick mom and her dad. It's about controversial cancer treatments in Mexico, about first loves, about discovering there are worst illnesses than cancer, and about the struggle to separate and chase our dreams. A very interesting book to read after Darling Rose Gold.

[Michelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was interested in reading this because it was nominated for William C. Morris award - I made a conscious decision to read all the nominees after having a lot of luck with nominees from years past (ie. The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender and Seraphina) - but was unfortunately disappointed.

Vanessa is the middle child of a three sister unit. She's been dealing with her mother's cancer diagnosis which has led the family to travel to a clinic in Mexico that offers treatment that's banned in the United States.

That's a very brief summary, but there's obviously more to the story than this. However, this is all I can really say without giving away too much.

Now, to my understanding, the Morris award typically focuses on distinguished writing in a debut novel - in this regard, this book *does* shine. It's beautifully written and the descriptions of the girls and their family bond felt very real and well realized.

However, there was one major aspect of this that I couldn't ignore and which ruined the whole reading experience for me. When it's revealed that the mother is not dying of cancer, but actually has Munchhausen, she's basically written out of the story and is treated like a villain. I understand that this story takes place in the 1970s and that these attitudes surrounding mental illness existed, but there was no subtext or nuance surrounding this. She just disappears and is talked about like she's evil incarnate. This made me super uncomfortable and I felt like it wasn't dealt with very sensitively, though I understand the intent.

Also, there's a romance to this that was just soo boorriinng and completely unnecessary. The whole plot point of the other family (a mother and her son) moving into Vanessa's place felt weird and contrived too. It also wasn't really touched upon very much either - I mean, the guy the main character is basically dating lives at her place, but she barely thinks/talks about it? It felt weird. I also felt like it was a cheap and easy workaround to make the family aware of what was actually going on with their mother. It felt super forced.

So, a bit of a bust overall. It's too bad because this had a lot of potential.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is the summer of 1976. The three Babcock sisters, who live in San Diego, spend much of their time traveling to Mexico with their mother, who is receiving Laetrile, an experimental treatment for her leukemia that is illegal in the USA. Though each of the girls is different, they are bonded by concern for their mother. While at the clinic, Vanessa befriends Caleb, a young man who is also undergoing treatment at the clinic. To make it easier on his family, Caleb and his mother move in with the Babcocks. When they suddenly leave with no explanation, a secret that changes all of their lives is revealed.
This is an intriguing YA book with an interesting twist. Also, the sisters are well-developed characters, with each of them having a distinct personality. I recommend this book.

[Wendy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book's cover is not doing it any favors. I picked it up at the library because I vaguely remembered hearing some positive buzz about it. I liked some aspects of it, and read it in one fell swoop between work and dinner. It's engaging and all. But even without knowing there was supposed to be a twist (which it says on the jacket), I caught on pretty early as to what that twist would be. And as someone who was a kid in 1976, I felt that while the clothing might have been described accurately, if they'd taken out all mention of the year (and those fashions), I would have thought it was contemporary, just from how people talked.

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story is so incredibly specific, from the details about the time and setting to the characters. I thought I would love it most for the sister relationships and lyrical writing, but then the plot ended up being my favorite part. The romance was pretty swoon-worthy too.

[Mi Universo Literario Writer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cuando empecé a leer Tell Me Something Real de Calla Devlin, pensé que era una historia sobre tres hermanas, tal como lo indica la sinopsis. Pero parece que es algo completamente diferente, con un poco sobre estas tres hermanas. ¡Me encantó este libro! No sé, al principio parecía algo 100% superficial, pero resulta que hay algo más... Algo significativo.

“And here is this boy, who acts like he spent his life with a map and I'm the buried treasure.”

Verán, esto es raro. No dudé en darle 2 estrellas a esta novela, porque siento que eso es lo que se merece como obra literaria. No me parece que el trabajo de Calla Devlin sea una maravilla, ni que el libro esté bien ejecutado. Los eventos de la trama son demasiado precipitados, los personajes son desarrollados sólo sobre la superficie, Devlin utiliza temas serios para su objetivo de entretenimiento y romantiza elementos de la vida real sólo para el propósito de su historia como si no comprendiera la magnitud de lo que abarcan los temas que incluye en su libro. Como libro, no creo que sea una maravilla. Un taaaaanto problemático... Y por eso las 2 estrellas.

“I'm the soft light compared to their ultraviolet.”

Peeeero aún así lo disfruté mucho xD. Todo lo negativo que les he comentado sobre Tell Me Something Real sólo lo descubrí al dedicarle una mirada crítica a la novela, pero no antes. Fui capaz de encontrar todo esto gracias a una lupa, pero nada de lo que he mencionado arruinaba la lectura. La pasé muy bien con este libro, y fue una lectura rápida y ligera para pasar el rato. Vi mucho de mí misma en esta historia, muchas cosas que no esperaba encontrar en lo más mínimo y de repente estaba con el corazón en la mano. Es como si hubiera sido escrito para mí xD. No sé, simplemente me llegó al alma, así de simple. Me llegó, y eso no lo vi venir. En absoluto. ¡Amé esto! No creo que sea un muy buen libro, pero me lo guardo con un gusto dulce.

“There's something inescapable about abandonment, an ever-present feeling of dread, an edge. I want to take his hand, to walk side by side in our grief, but there's something else about being unwanted: It leaves you feeling completely alone.”

[Robyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three sisters face the death of their mother in a time of social change. There were moments in this book that felt startlingly real, and then there were others when the emotions were just words on the page.

Overall, the book was ok, but there is just something a tad off, so at the best points, the emotions I looked for were stifled. I am not saying that I didn't shed a tear of two...

3 stars

Happy Reading!


I was surfing through my library and found so many books that have the words "tell me" in their title. I decided to read as many as I could... sort of a self challenge... this wasn't the first but it is one of many.

PS.. where is the world did that ugly cover come from?

[Ashley Muthaka · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, it wasn’t too difficult to get through but it also tackled some heavy issues like mental illness and how it affects the person and those around them. I would have liked more closure at the end but I’m learning to accept that we won’t always get the ending that we want and that’s okay.

[Maitha · Rating 3 out of 5]

That just wasn’t expected!!
I liked the book the unexpected twist to the story!! But god I felt bored!!!!! the character development was kinda slow & almost non existent.. I also didn’t feel a thing for any of the characters or what they felt.. no less it worth the read

[Lisa Piazza · Rating 4 out of 5]

This wasn’t at all what I expected ... and for THAT reason it gets a full 4 stars! I loved the characters ... especially the three girls. I almost want a sequel. 😁

[Kathryn G · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yes, another sick kid book. Though sick kid is secondary in this tale about Vanessa caring for her mom who has cancer. It felt a little disjointed, but the second half was intriguing and difficult.

[Estee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't know what to say about this book without spoiling anything. Just read it.

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"Just allow yourself to feel right now. You don't have to understand it. That will come later. It may never come, honestly. Just play the piano. it's the best thing you can do."

---

"It's from On the Road. 'Nothing behind me. Everything ahead of me.'"
"Everything is behind be," I say. "Everything."

[Michal Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I feel like this is a book I'll be thinking about for a while. More thoughts to come soon.

11/19: This book is difficult to review without getting into spoilers, so I'm going to try my darndest to get my thoughts out and hide the spoilers for anyone who hasn't read it but is interested in reading it.

I honestly don't know if I would've read this book if I didn't know that there was a lot more to the concept (three daughters focused on their leukemia-stricken mother) than what is presented. The book takes place in 1976, but it never felt like it was trying to be a book that takes place in 1976. After finishing the story, I think I understand why it took place 40 years ago.

Though the book does focus on the bonds of sisterhood, it's more so about the way each sister is handling their mother's illness and we only see it from the outside, through Vanessa's eyes. I still feel like I got to know the sisters. But illness can cause rifts and that's sort of what is happening here.

Okay, I have to get into spoilers now.

So, we find out by Part 2 that Mrs. Babcock is sick...but it's not with cancer. It's Munchausen syndrome. According to WebMD: "Munchausen syndrome is a factitious disorder, a mental disorder in which a person repeatedly and deliberately acts as if he or she has a physical or mental illness when he or she is not really sick. Munchausen syndrome is considered a mental illness because it is associated with severe emotional difficulties." This is more than hypochondria. This is people going to great lengths to get treatments they don't need, often poisoning themselves in the process. This syndrome is harmful to the person with the illness, but there is also Munchausen by Proxy, where the person with the syndrome treats a loved one (often a child) as though they have an illness and the cycle of unnecessary medical procedures begins again, this time endangering someone else.

I am fascinated and curious about this syndrome because it seems fairly easy to diagnose but not as easy to treat. Most people with Munchausen do have some other mental disorder or have suffered trauma in their childhood. We don't really learn WHY their mother has it. We just know that she sort of always behaved as though she was incredibly ill and that she has gone to great lengths to keep the truth hidden.

The book was always meant to be about the Babcock sisters and their struggle to deal with the impending loss of their mother. Though she doesn't actually have cancer, they HAVE lost their mother to an illness. Once she is diagnosed, she is put into a mental hospital for at least 90 days and their father has to work hard to see if he can get a restraining order against her if they release her. This is heartbreaking in so many ways. It's about the protection of the children and of herself. She is not well and she has the potential (and nearly did get the youngest involved in the mess, too) to harm herself and others.

The Babcock sisters feel betrayed and go through all of the motions that come with loss. Their situation is just a lot more complicated than that. They don't want people to know what is really wrong with their mother. Who would? I think that's why this book takes place in 1976. I might be wrong in thinking this way, but so much has changed in the way of cancer treatment. There isn't a need to cross the border and get an illegal treatment when so much has improved. So many more doctors are involved and there has to be more of a crack down on fraudulent prescriptions. Munchausen's is still a thing, for sure, but I think it can be detected quicker now than it had been before. There's also the fact that, though there still very much is a stigma, mental illness was so very, very misunderstood.

I feel like I can't properly put into words what I want to say about how well done this book was in the realistic reactions of each character. I want to ask Calla Devlin a zillion questions about why she wrote this and why it took place in the past.

Vanessa's narration was lovely. I think she made a lot of beautiful observations, but they never felt older than necessary. Grief ages a person and changes their perspective on life and purpose. Though the romance does seem a bit too convenient, it never put me off of the book. It was the introduction of this character that shifted the story.

[Marochka · Rating 2 out of 5]

Если вы желаете впасть в безграничную депрессию, из которой вам будет очень не просто выбраться, эта книга для вас.
Если не желаете, бегите от нее быстрее, она поразительно неприятная и скучная.
70-е годы XX века – время, когда было не так уж просто поддерживать отношения на расстоянии. Да и развлечений\отвлечений было явно поменьше, чем сейчас. И поэтому главная героиня погружается в пучину депрессии безостановочно (и хоть автор пытается показать, что музыка спасает ее, из-за странного способа повествования, читатель не может в это поверить). Ей не на что отвлечься, у нее плохо все... но, к сожалению, не могу перечислить, т.к. очень спойлерно. Ей толком даже поговорить не с кем. Старшая сестра сама еле справляется со сложившейся ситуацией, хотя девочки близки. Младшая вообще сходит с ума, зациклившись на религии и отсутствии матери. В книге плохо все, нет ничего светлого и доброго.
А то, что могло хоть каким-то лучиком света стать для читателя – отношения Ванессы с Калебом – описано на двух страницах книги.
Вообще книга «скомканная», иначе ее не описать. Она короткая (и на том спасибо, если честно), написана ужасно странно: только что автор говорил об одном, про это еще не закончил, а в следующей строчке речь уже совершенно о другом, причем, ничего себе, по сюжету прошло шесть недель.
Как описаны отношения героини с Калебом (небольшие спойлеры!): познакомились, стали жить вместе, поговорили, влюбились, поговорили, переспали, разъехались. Вот серьезно, все на 2-х страницах. Все шесть недель. Это что вообще такое было?
И так происходит буквально все. Причем автор описывает какие-то совершенно неинтересные и скучные моменты очень подробно, которые вообще можно было бы опустить, а реально важные: болезнь, отношения, как Ванесса со всем справляется – в двух строчках.
Я прекрасно понимаю, откуда у книги такой низкий рейтинг на Goodreads. Как это читать, вообще не ясно.
Единственный плюс – есть в книге один момент, который можно назвать: «вот это поворот».
Больше плюсов я в книге не нашла. Невыносимо скучно, странно и жутко депрессивно.
Не могу понять, как автор одобряет поступки своих героев, делает их примером для подражания.
Я люблю грустные книги, но в них должна быть хоть пара лучиков света, чтобы это было реально прочитать.