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Essential Maps for the Lost
There are many ways to be lost.
Sometimes people want to be lost. Madison—Mads to everyone who knows her—is trying her best to escape herself during one last summer away from a mother who needs more from her than she can give, and from a future that has been decided by everyone but her.
Sometimes the lost do the unimaginable, like the woman, the body, Mads collides with in the middle of the water on a traumatic morning that changes everything.
And sometimes the lost are the ones left behind, like the son of the woman in the water, Billy Youngwolf Floyd. Billy is struggling to find his way through each day in the shadow of grief. His one comfort is the map he carries in his pocket, out of his favorite book, The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler.
When three lives (and one special, shared book) collide, strange things happen. Things like questions and coincidences and secrets, lots of secrets. Things like falling in love. But can two lost people telling so many lies find their way through tragedy to each other…and to solid ground?
Sometimes people want to be lost. Madison—Mads to everyone who knows her—is trying her best to escape herself during one last summer away from a mother who needs more from her than she can give, and from a future that has been decided by everyone but her.
Sometimes the lost do the unimaginable, like the woman, the body, Mads collides with in the middle of the water on a traumatic morning that changes everything.
And sometimes the lost are the ones left behind, like the son of the woman in the water, Billy Youngwolf Floyd. Billy is struggling to find his way through each day in the shadow of grief. His one comfort is the map he carries in his pocket, out of his favorite book, The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler.
When three lives (and one special, shared book) collide, strange things happen. Things like questions and coincidences and secrets, lots of secrets. Things like falling in love. But can two lost people telling so many lies find their way through tragedy to each other…and to solid ground?
320 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 5, 2016
37 people are currently reading
2885 people want to read
About the author
Deb Caletti
37 books2,281 followersDeb Caletti is the award-winning and critically acclaimed author of over twenty books for adults and young adults, including Honey, Baby, Sweetheart, a finalist for the National Book Award, and A Heart in a Body in the World, a Michael L. Printz Honor Book. Her books have also won the Josette Frank Award for Fiction, the Washington State Book Award, and numerous other state awards and honors, and she was a finalist for the PEN USA Award. She lives with her family in Seattle.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 194 reviews
July 29, 2018
Read as an e-book via Scribd!
T/W- Depression, Suicide
Overall, I found Essential Maps For The Lost to be an unsettling and personally far too triggering read for me. The story followed Mads or Madison who escapes from her Mum over the course of a single summer and lets others control her future. One day while swimming, she collides into the body of a young woman in the water. She has taken her own life. Struggling mentally after that experience, she one day meets the son of the woman called Billy who is also having to come to terms with what happened. There is a map in his pocket from his favourite book that relaxes him. Both of them together have to find a way to live but also move on. I really struggled to connect with both the writing style and characters. I was close to DNF'ing at 50% but chose to continue due to the fast pacing. It was hard to finish and unfortunately one that I won't be re-reading.
T/W- Depression, Suicide
Overall, I found Essential Maps For The Lost to be an unsettling and personally far too triggering read for me. The story followed Mads or Madison who escapes from her Mum over the course of a single summer and lets others control her future. One day while swimming, she collides into the body of a young woman in the water. She has taken her own life. Struggling mentally after that experience, she one day meets the son of the woman called Billy who is also having to come to terms with what happened. There is a map in his pocket from his favourite book that relaxes him. Both of them together have to find a way to live but also move on. I really struggled to connect with both the writing style and characters. I was close to DNF'ing at 50% but chose to continue due to the fast pacing. It was hard to finish and unfortunately one that I won't be re-reading.
March 19, 2016
Just really bored reading this. Going to dnf it for the time being.
February 13, 2016
Won in the First Reads giveaways.
I thought this book was funny and sweet and mostly realistic.
I do have some worries about it though.
1. " "Gee gow." Ivy points. It's possible she's fluent in Chinese. " Um... That's too Rosie O'Donnell for me.
2. Most scenes of intimacy between Mads and Billy are from Billy's point of view. So are all of the sexual thoughts. Like Mads doesn't consider it at all. We don't know how she feels about him constantly kissing her and giving her puppy eyes.
3. I'm a little worried that the portrayal of Amy is one of those "hate non-bookish girls who were probably cheerleaders" things that shows up in some YA. We shouldn't teach bookish girls to hate cheerleaders. Bookish girls can even be cheerleaders. I dunno. There weren't cheerleaders at my high school. I have never seen one in my life. Maybe they are a myth.
That said, the book was really good:
1. It had good portrayals of grief, mental illness, co-dependency and how messed up it is, etc. I think it could help people with toxic parents/guardians.
2. I liked that the characters had dated before meeting each other and there wasn't any strengthening of the virginity myth.
3. There was one line I really loved: "It's funny what happens when you call people on their bullshit. The worst offenders always feel the most wronged." There were a lot of insightful moments like that.
I thought this book was funny and sweet and mostly realistic.
I do have some worries about it though.
1. " "Gee gow." Ivy points. It's possible she's fluent in Chinese. " Um... That's too Rosie O'Donnell for me.
2. Most scenes of intimacy between Mads and Billy are from Billy's point of view. So are all of the sexual thoughts. Like Mads doesn't consider it at all. We don't know how she feels about him constantly kissing her and giving her puppy eyes.
3. I'm a little worried that the portrayal of Amy is one of those "hate non-bookish girls who were probably cheerleaders" things that shows up in some YA. We shouldn't teach bookish girls to hate cheerleaders. Bookish girls can even be cheerleaders. I dunno. There weren't cheerleaders at my high school. I have never seen one in my life. Maybe they are a myth.
That said, the book was really good:
1. It had good portrayals of grief, mental illness, co-dependency and how messed up it is, etc. I think it could help people with toxic parents/guardians.
2. I liked that the characters had dated before meeting each other and there wasn't any strengthening of the virginity myth.
3. There was one line I really loved: "It's funny what happens when you call people on their bullshit. The worst offenders always feel the most wronged." There were a lot of insightful moments like that.
dnf
August 23, 2016The writing is absolutely gorgeous, and in omniscient third which you don't see a lot in YA. However, it's also very distancing, which is a odd choice for a romance. I don't care about these characters, and the heroine's desire to steal a baby is not a Christina plot. From the start, I've been both impressed by this book and desperately not ever felt like reading any of it. So I'm stopping.
January 10, 2019
Reading Challenge Categories:
-#Ampersand2019 Reading Challenge: A contemporary book
-Beat the Backlist Reading Bingo: New-to-you author
-January Bookish Bingo: An author you've never read
-#ReadingUSA: Washington
-#Ampersand2019 Reading Challenge: A contemporary book
-Beat the Backlist Reading Bingo: New-to-you author
-January Bookish Bingo: An author you've never read
-#ReadingUSA: Washington
May 22, 2017
I'm so sad that i didn't like this book!! I always pick out what book I'm going to read very carefully through reading reviews and the synopsis and I was soooo disappointed. Most of my ratings are 4-5 stars, and it doesn't feel good adding such a lowly rated book to my reviews :(. I wanted to like this book, I really did, but at the end of the day, I couldn't take it anymore. THIS BOOK WAS SO GODDAMN BORING. I hate to be so rash, but I don't know how else to put it. It was slow..... I kept hoping it would pick up but it never does. It's hard to keep focusing on this book, and by the time it slightly gets interesting, you don't know what's happening because you haven't been paying attention. I guess that's why it took so long for me to finish because I was so determined to read it but i never felt like reading it. Books are supposed to be my escape, my happy place, but this book really made me fall asleep. I yawned soooo much. It was such a bummer. Now, for some more constructive criticism. Although the outline and synopsis of the book were great, the details need heavy improvement. For example, I need better character development. Their personalities need some polishing, they are too bland. Additionally, the storyline is too detailed with world-building and not enough events. Scrap the descriptions for awhile, and just focusing on adding twists and turns to the story to make it more interesting. Furthermore, I think this book would have benefitted from starting in the middle of the storyline and working backwards to understand the past and then the future. That's all I can say, really. Just not my type of book.
April 22, 2016
I checked this book out from the local library, and didn't want to return it. There were so many good quotes in it, but this is the only one I wrote down: "Can you imagine being depressed and then being judged for being depressed? Who's crazier anyway: people who struggle honestly, or the people who act like they never do?" This book deals with depression in an insightful manner. The two main characters are Madison ("Mads" for short---that nickname drove ME a little crazy, though) and Billy. At the start of the book, Mads bumps into a dead body in the river, who happens to be Billy's mom. This traumatizes her and clearly doesn't help at all with her own battle with depression. She starts trying to find out information about the lady who committed suicide, which puts her in Billy's path. Madi doesn't tell Billy that she found his mom at the outset of their "relationship," so it becomes a lie by omission. He is of course struggling with the loss of his mother, while Mads is trying to escape hers. He carries a map from a book that his mom loved, which is how it got the title.
April 7, 2016
You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight
I didn't dislike this book, which should count for something. I did, however, feel like it didn't exactly leave an impact on me in any real way. It was entertaining enough as I was reading, and the writing style was quirky and unique, which I loved. Mads and Billy were fine characters, and I felt for them and their struggles. They both come from messy home situations (as you may have guessed from the whole "woman dead in the water" thing), and have a connection to each other than only one of them knows about.
I had typed out a list of "good and not good"... and as I was typing it out I think I realized that this book was more problematic than I thought upon finishing it. I liked it in the moment, for the most part. But when going over it in my head, some things troubled me.
I felt for Mads and Billy, I did. But they were really dysfunctional on every level. Mads kept wanting to steal the baby she was a babysitter for. Billy stole dogs from his neighbors to take to the kennel he worked at. Mads was obsessed with Billy's mom, without his knowledge. Then they have a romance... which is based on lies- pretty serious ones. It did leave me a bit unsettled that the only reason they ever liked each other (or at least, that Mads liked Billy) was because she found his mom floating during a morning swim. As for their "caretakers", Mads' mom is awful- self absorbed, co-dependent, and a sorry excuse for a parent all around, and yet somehow, Billy's bullying and cruel grandma is even worse. The mental health pieces are most definitely not as in depth as I would have liked, especially considering the family histories.
Mads trying to find herself was a good thing. Billy trying to figure out his place in the world was a good thing. Mads' aunt, uncle, and cousin were lovely characters. I liked the writing style quite a bit too. But as a whole, I find that it was lacking in some of the substance I was looking for.
Bottom Line: The story itself was entertaining, and there were some very charming pieces, but I feel like it just touched the surface of suicide and mental health, and really even Billy and Mads as characters.
*Copy provided by publisher for review
I didn't dislike this book, which should count for something. I did, however, feel like it didn't exactly leave an impact on me in any real way. It was entertaining enough as I was reading, and the writing style was quirky and unique, which I loved. Mads and Billy were fine characters, and I felt for them and their struggles. They both come from messy home situations (as you may have guessed from the whole "woman dead in the water" thing), and have a connection to each other than only one of them knows about.
I had typed out a list of "good and not good"... and as I was typing it out I think I realized that this book was more problematic than I thought upon finishing it. I liked it in the moment, for the most part. But when going over it in my head, some things troubled me.
I felt for Mads and Billy, I did. But they were really dysfunctional on every level. Mads kept wanting to steal the baby she was a babysitter for. Billy stole dogs from his neighbors to take to the kennel he worked at. Mads was obsessed with Billy's mom, without his knowledge. Then they have a romance... which is based on lies- pretty serious ones. It did leave me a bit unsettled that the only reason they ever liked each other (or at least, that Mads liked Billy) was because she found his mom floating during a morning swim. As for their "caretakers", Mads' mom is awful- self absorbed, co-dependent, and a sorry excuse for a parent all around, and yet somehow, Billy's bullying and cruel grandma is even worse. The mental health pieces are most definitely not as in depth as I would have liked, especially considering the family histories.
Mads trying to find herself was a good thing. Billy trying to figure out his place in the world was a good thing. Mads' aunt, uncle, and cousin were lovely characters. I liked the writing style quite a bit too. But as a whole, I find that it was lacking in some of the substance I was looking for.
Bottom Line: The story itself was entertaining, and there were some very charming pieces, but I feel like it just touched the surface of suicide and mental health, and really even Billy and Mads as characters.
*Copy provided by publisher for review
Read
April 2, 2016This is my first Deb Caletti book and that's embarrassing for someone like me who is a huge fan of contemp YA. Many blogging/actively literate friends have been raving about her for years and I absolutely get it.
From what I understand, her books tend to deal with important things (abusive relationships, for example, and anxiety) and this one is no exception. This book is actually one of the best representations of grief I've ever read.
Deb Caletti's writing is also gorgeous. She writes these profound things but never makes them seem like those obnoxious things that you'd see on Facebook graphics, maybe with a picture of footprints on the beach. (You know exactly what I'm talking about, don't pretend like you don't.)
And another gift of hers is writing these incredible characters who aren't really described all that well, but who you can immediately recognize and imagine. She does a phenomenal job of showing, not telling, what her characters are going through.
I'm very excited because I know she has quite the backlist and I can't wait to get started.
Recommended.
From what I understand, her books tend to deal with important things (abusive relationships, for example, and anxiety) and this one is no exception. This book is actually one of the best representations of grief I've ever read.
Deb Caletti's writing is also gorgeous. She writes these profound things but never makes them seem like those obnoxious things that you'd see on Facebook graphics, maybe with a picture of footprints on the beach. (You know exactly what I'm talking about, don't pretend like you don't.)
And another gift of hers is writing these incredible characters who aren't really described all that well, but who you can immediately recognize and imagine. She does a phenomenal job of showing, not telling, what her characters are going through.
I'm very excited because I know she has quite the backlist and I can't wait to get started.
Recommended.
September 2, 2018
http://www.writingis.fun/%D0%BF%D1%8A...
Предишните дни ми се стори най-сетне време да отметна и тази книжка, която търпеливо очакваше да бъде прочета на рафта на библиотеката ми. Помня, че наскоро бях направила едно запитване коя книга да прочета и доста хора дадоха мнение за „Пътеводителят за изгубени сърца“. И така, аз след още известно мислене по въпроса я грабнах.
Предишните дни ми се стори най-сетне време да отметна и тази книжка, която търпеливо очакваше да бъде прочета на рафта на библиотеката ми. Помня, че наскоро бях направила едно запитване коя книга да прочета и доста хора дадоха мнение за „Пътеводителят за изгубени сърца“. И така, аз след още известно мислене по въпроса я грабнах.
August 21, 2019
I've liked Deb Caletti books in the past, so I picked this one up from the library. Unfortunately I had a bit of trouble getting into the story. It's told in the third person, but from alternating points of view if that makes sense. I just struggled a bit with it being written like that.
The actual "meat" of the story was quite good. I like that both teens had something that they were struggling with and how they sort of helped each other without knowing that they were. I also really liked Mads' aunt and uncle and the insight they had into her life and her choices. It can be hard to make your own choices in life when you think you are letting your parents down. I imagine that would especially be true if you are raised by a single parent. As a mother, I hope that I encourage my kids to follow their own dreams and not what they think I want for them.
I also was impressed with how the author dealt with the depression that Billy saw in Mads and how he stepped right in to address it. I think too often we tend to tip toe around the subject and what we might see in other people for fear of making things worse or awkward or uncomfortable. If we see someone struggling, we need to speak up...we need to step in and see what we can do to help out.
All in all, I think I would have given this a full 4 stars if it had been written in first person, or even first person alternating.
The actual "meat" of the story was quite good. I like that both teens had something that they were struggling with and how they sort of helped each other without knowing that they were. I also really liked Mads' aunt and uncle and the insight they had into her life and her choices. It can be hard to make your own choices in life when you think you are letting your parents down. I imagine that would especially be true if you are raised by a single parent. As a mother, I hope that I encourage my kids to follow their own dreams and not what they think I want for them.
I also was impressed with how the author dealt with the depression that Billy saw in Mads and how he stepped right in to address it. I think too often we tend to tip toe around the subject and what we might see in other people for fear of making things worse or awkward or uncomfortable. If we see someone struggling, we need to speak up...we need to step in and see what we can do to help out.
All in all, I think I would have given this a full 4 stars if it had been written in first person, or even first person alternating.
September 12, 2023
I've missed Cap't Ed and his roaming RV
June 28, 2017
Uh it was amazing. I loved it dearly!!!
July 23, 2022
This was such a beautiful story. It was quite unique (I mean it literally starts with a dead corpse) and I think it worked in its favour. It’s the kind of book where the direct acknowledgment of tragedy and broken relationships and heartbreak and lying and trauma and depression and all the horrible things about life works to make the book even more joyful. I like the way it talked about love in all its forms, how it’s unconditional, how you can love someone who can be really terrible a lot of the time, how it doesn’t cure people but it gives them the strength to be cured.
It’s written so well that it sucks you right into their world, right into Mads’s and Billy’s heads and hearts. Their personalities were so different, and yet it was like their souls were connected. I was really into the parallels in their lives (like Mads with Ivy and Billy with the dogs). It was as if… soulmates were real. Their love was messy and quick and big and dangerous, and all-around wonderful. They helped each other. They were so good for each other.
It’s one of those books where when it’s over you actually feel like you’ve lost some people dear to you.
I’m gonna end this review with a quote: “In the terrain of those maps, tragedy would be everywhere you looked, but so, too, would be the huge halls of treasure to be discovered.” (300)
It’s written so well that it sucks you right into their world, right into Mads’s and Billy’s heads and hearts. Their personalities were so different, and yet it was like their souls were connected. I was really into the parallels in their lives (like Mads with Ivy and Billy with the dogs). It was as if… soulmates were real. Their love was messy and quick and big and dangerous, and all-around wonderful. They helped each other. They were so good for each other.
It’s one of those books where when it’s over you actually feel like you’ve lost some people dear to you.
I’m gonna end this review with a quote: “In the terrain of those maps, tragedy would be everywhere you looked, but so, too, would be the huge halls of treasure to be discovered.” (300)
January 16, 2023
I was a little hesitant when I started this one. This was a book club pick, and I had heard mixed reviews going in. Overall, the story was a decent mixture of silly/quirky situations with lots of depressive/suicidal moments. The author does a great job of making you really feel what is going on inside Mads’ and Billy’s heads. Their truth is so relatable to others that experience these kinds of thoughts. It really makes you stop and think rather than judge those who experience these things on the regular.
It was very different than what I normally read. I appreciate that it makes the reader think and reflect. I also enjoyed that the characters were able to bond over a book, which is something that I find myself doing more so. Finding the strength to move forward after trauma can be hard, and the author showed that it may take time but it is possible one step at a time.
It was very different than what I normally read. I appreciate that it makes the reader think and reflect. I also enjoyed that the characters were able to bond over a book, which is something that I find myself doing more so. Finding the strength to move forward after trauma can be hard, and the author showed that it may take time but it is possible one step at a time.
February 2, 2018
There are many ways to be lost, and, if we're lucky, maps to find our way back. For Mads, trapped in the inescapable undertow of her mother's impossible dream, an early morning swim connects her to Billy Youngwolf Floyd. The thread that connects them? Billy's mother, Anna, whose body Mads discovers in the lake. Both Mads and Billy have a deep desire to rescue those who can't speak for themselves, which means they both have a lot of questions about Anna's suicide, but are there really any answers? Billy hopes so, and carries a map from his and Anna's favorite book, which Mads also loves. Can a fictional map lead to somewhere real? For Mads and Billy, the answer is yes.
Billy may not be a bookworm, but definitely gets book boyfriend status, thanks to his love for dogs, his mother, and for Mads. The ending is a true sail into the sunset moment, sure to satisfy romance fans of any age.
Billy may not be a bookworm, but definitely gets book boyfriend status, thanks to his love for dogs, his mother, and for Mads. The ending is a true sail into the sunset moment, sure to satisfy romance fans of any age.
January 14, 2023
3.5/5 stars. I listened to the audiobook of this for my book club. Overall, I thought this book did a decent job at portraying grief and depression. However, I can see how this book could be triggering to anyone who has been suicidal or exposed to suicide. Definitely wouldn’t recommend to just anyone. I did enjoy the realness of the main characters, and I thought it was cute how they bonded over a childhood book favorite of theirs.
May 23, 2016
Check out this and other reviews on my young adult book blog, Here's to Happy Endings!
“Somewhere in the universe, a couple of stars collide. They aren’t fancy stars, or even ones with names. Just regular old stars. Two of millions. Still, just like that, some of the best things begin.”
There are plenty of sweet, romantic YA contemporary novels out there that focus on cute, fluffy relationships and all kinds of high school drama – none of them going very deep or having much substance to them. Essential Maps for the Lost offers something a little more than that.
Madison (or Mads, as everyone calls her) is spending summer away from her mother, who is trying to force her to become a part of her real-estate business, even though Mads would much rather go to college and find a career for herself that she actually wants. In order to make her mother happy, she agrees to stay with her aunt, uncle, and cousin during the summer while taking real-estate classes at the local college so she can come home and sign the paperwork making her a partner with her mom.
One morning, when out for a swim near her family’s house, Mads makes a shocking discovery: she runs into the body of a woman while swimming. Not really a great way to start the day.
From that point on, Mads becomes obsessed with the woman – Googling her, finding her home and investigating it, even learning that the woman had a son, Billy Youngwolf Floyd.
Billy, grieving for his mother and full of questions, has moved in with his grandmother after the death of his mother. He works at a local animal shelter, where he spends free time picking up strays or neglected and abused animals and brings them in, finding them good homes where they will be happy. But Billy himself is lost and confused. The only thing that makes him feel better and makes any sense is a map from a favorite book that he shared with his mother.
When Billy first notices Mads, he doesn’t think much of it – she was probably only dating one of the guys in the neighborhood of his old house – after all, why else would she be standing outside the house? But when he meets up with her at other random times, such as on a bridge, where he thinks she might be planning to jump, he eventually starts to wonder if perhaps they were supposed to know each other. Mads wonders the same thing, as her obsessions with the dead woman and her family continue. As the two of them start to build a relationship, it becomes harder for Mads to tell Billy exactly why they had met – because she was the girl who pulled his mother’s body out of the water.
What I liked most about this book was that it had a lot of substance to it. It was filled with deep, meaningful situations that stand out from traditional YA romance novels. Essential Maps for the Lost didn’t just focus on finding “the one” – it also focused on the self-discovery and figuring out who you really are and what you want from life.
Billy and Mads were both wonderful characters – they were full of depth and had really wonderful personalities. It was nice watching the two of them meet and slowly begin to develop feelings for each other over the course of the summer. I even loved Billy’s grandmother (she was a bit cranky, but in a way that you couldn’t help but love her character).
The pacing in the book is a little bit on the slow side, and I felt like there were a few chapters where not too much actually happened, though. I don’t usually mind slow pacing if the rest of the book is good, so it didn’t bother me all that much. The writing was beautiful and serene…I think this book would be perfect for summer reading…especially on a camping trip or something.
Essential Maps for the Lost is a touching novel, the kind that you find yourself reading long into the night full of hope for the main characters and their budding relationship.
Note: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
“Somewhere in the universe, a couple of stars collide. They aren’t fancy stars, or even ones with names. Just regular old stars. Two of millions. Still, just like that, some of the best things begin.”
There are plenty of sweet, romantic YA contemporary novels out there that focus on cute, fluffy relationships and all kinds of high school drama – none of them going very deep or having much substance to them. Essential Maps for the Lost offers something a little more than that.
Madison (or Mads, as everyone calls her) is spending summer away from her mother, who is trying to force her to become a part of her real-estate business, even though Mads would much rather go to college and find a career for herself that she actually wants. In order to make her mother happy, she agrees to stay with her aunt, uncle, and cousin during the summer while taking real-estate classes at the local college so she can come home and sign the paperwork making her a partner with her mom.
One morning, when out for a swim near her family’s house, Mads makes a shocking discovery: she runs into the body of a woman while swimming. Not really a great way to start the day.
From that point on, Mads becomes obsessed with the woman – Googling her, finding her home and investigating it, even learning that the woman had a son, Billy Youngwolf Floyd.
Billy, grieving for his mother and full of questions, has moved in with his grandmother after the death of his mother. He works at a local animal shelter, where he spends free time picking up strays or neglected and abused animals and brings them in, finding them good homes where they will be happy. But Billy himself is lost and confused. The only thing that makes him feel better and makes any sense is a map from a favorite book that he shared with his mother.
When Billy first notices Mads, he doesn’t think much of it – she was probably only dating one of the guys in the neighborhood of his old house – after all, why else would she be standing outside the house? But when he meets up with her at other random times, such as on a bridge, where he thinks she might be planning to jump, he eventually starts to wonder if perhaps they were supposed to know each other. Mads wonders the same thing, as her obsessions with the dead woman and her family continue. As the two of them start to build a relationship, it becomes harder for Mads to tell Billy exactly why they had met – because she was the girl who pulled his mother’s body out of the water.
What I liked most about this book was that it had a lot of substance to it. It was filled with deep, meaningful situations that stand out from traditional YA romance novels. Essential Maps for the Lost didn’t just focus on finding “the one” – it also focused on the self-discovery and figuring out who you really are and what you want from life.
Billy and Mads were both wonderful characters – they were full of depth and had really wonderful personalities. It was nice watching the two of them meet and slowly begin to develop feelings for each other over the course of the summer. I even loved Billy’s grandmother (she was a bit cranky, but in a way that you couldn’t help but love her character).
The pacing in the book is a little bit on the slow side, and I felt like there were a few chapters where not too much actually happened, though. I don’t usually mind slow pacing if the rest of the book is good, so it didn’t bother me all that much. The writing was beautiful and serene…I think this book would be perfect for summer reading…especially on a camping trip or something.
Essential Maps for the Lost is a touching novel, the kind that you find yourself reading long into the night full of hope for the main characters and their budding relationship.
Note: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
June 28, 2016
"She'll rescue herself because she kisses back, she lets love in, and love is one of the only weapons that has half a chance in the dark."
Mads is trying her best to escape: from a mother who can do nothing alone, to a future that she wants nothing to do with. After colliding with a woman's body in the river, Mads goes to stay with her aunt and uncle for the summer. But Mads didn't expect to meet a boy- Billy, the son of the woman she collided with in the river. Through coincidences and complications, Mads and Billy's worlds collide.
This book was different from Caletti's other works. It was told in an almost omnipresent viewpoint, which told us right off the bat that this would be different. It was also told in alternating viewpoints, which was an interesting treat, as Caletti's novels are usually only one point of view.
I found myself racing through this book, unlike many of Caletti's past novels, which I tend to slug through. Filled with flirting, wisdom, and an interesting plot, I devoured this book.
The characters in this book were so lovable. At least 70% of the time, I pick apart the main character. This time, however, I did not hate any character in the novel aside from Mads' mom (who I believe you were supposed to hate, let's be honest), and was too busy loving the characters to tear them to pieces.
Despite his awful name, Billy Youngwolf Floyd was pretty dang cute. Unlike other male leads in YA, Billy was not a smooth talking charmer. He was awkward and nerdy, with lots of references to Night Worlds, his favourite video game. The fact that Billy rescued dogs in his free him and wasn't afraid to cry just made my heart leap. He was adorable and made this novel great.
Though the story was told in alternating viewpoints, I felt that Mads was the dominant one. Mads was, as usual, a "relatable" character. She had a mental illness, as most young adult heroines do. But Mads was a very strong character. She whispered words of wisdom to baby Ivy, and she let herself love. Mads saved herself. I love how Caletti emphasizes that you don't need a boy to save you.
My one big problem with the book (ok, fine; minor problem- I love this book so much! There is nothing majorly wrong with it) was that the intimate scenes were only in Billy's perspective. We never got to see what Mads thought when Billy kissed her. It was all longing and desire on Billy's end, but Mads seemed unresponsive and just overall blah about it, since we never got to be inside of her mind.
The fact that we never did see Mads' point of view during intimate scenes frustrates me. We generally never do get a girl's perspective on intimacy in young adult, which, as a feminist, is a pet peeve of mine.
Overall, the romance was adorable and I absolutely loved the characters to pieces! Deb Caletti really outdid herself on this novel.
Mads is trying her best to escape: from a mother who can do nothing alone, to a future that she wants nothing to do with. After colliding with a woman's body in the river, Mads goes to stay with her aunt and uncle for the summer. But Mads didn't expect to meet a boy- Billy, the son of the woman she collided with in the river. Through coincidences and complications, Mads and Billy's worlds collide.
This book was different from Caletti's other works. It was told in an almost omnipresent viewpoint, which told us right off the bat that this would be different. It was also told in alternating viewpoints, which was an interesting treat, as Caletti's novels are usually only one point of view.
I found myself racing through this book, unlike many of Caletti's past novels, which I tend to slug through. Filled with flirting, wisdom, and an interesting plot, I devoured this book.
The characters in this book were so lovable. At least 70% of the time, I pick apart the main character. This time, however, I did not hate any character in the novel aside from Mads' mom (who I believe you were supposed to hate, let's be honest), and was too busy loving the characters to tear them to pieces.
Despite his awful name, Billy Youngwolf Floyd was pretty dang cute. Unlike other male leads in YA, Billy was not a smooth talking charmer. He was awkward and nerdy, with lots of references to Night Worlds, his favourite video game. The fact that Billy rescued dogs in his free him and wasn't afraid to cry just made my heart leap. He was adorable and made this novel great.
Though the story was told in alternating viewpoints, I felt that Mads was the dominant one. Mads was, as usual, a "relatable" character. She had a mental illness, as most young adult heroines do. But Mads was a very strong character. She whispered words of wisdom to baby Ivy, and she let herself love. Mads saved herself. I love how Caletti emphasizes that you don't need a boy to save you.
My one big problem with the book (ok, fine; minor problem- I love this book so much! There is nothing majorly wrong with it) was that the intimate scenes were only in Billy's perspective. We never got to see what Mads thought when Billy kissed her. It was all longing and desire on Billy's end, but Mads seemed unresponsive and just overall blah about it, since we never got to be inside of her mind.
The fact that we never did see Mads' point of view during intimate scenes frustrates me. We generally never do get a girl's perspective on intimacy in young adult, which, as a feminist, is a pet peeve of mine.
Overall, the romance was adorable and I absolutely loved the characters to pieces! Deb Caletti really outdid herself on this novel.
June 15, 2016
“A husband might ditch the joint, but a daughter never can,” eighteen-year-old Mads reflects. Having graduated high school early, she’s now living with her aunt and uncle taking an intensive community college course so she can get her realtor’s licence, and join her mother’s practice. Never mind that it’s not what she wants – that her dream is to study English at university – this is the path that’s been set out for her. And she’s drowning in it.
This sophisticated YA novel by the prolific Seattle-based Deb Caletti, who’s produced a book a year for over a decade, is set near the water, and drowning both metaphorically and literally is at its heart. On a morning swim, Mads encounters a dead body and pulls it to shore, an experience that pushes her further into the depression that she’s struggling with. She becomes obsessed with the drowned woman, who threw herself off a nearby bridge, and goes to her old home – where she meets her nineteen-year-old son, Billy, for the first but not the last time.
Billy is a decent guy, but haunted by his mother’s death and the years of upset before that; now he lives with his unsympathetic grandmother and steals badly-treated dogs from their owners, then deposits them at the shelter he works with, claiming that they’re ‘lost’. Without hammering the point home, we can see that both he and Mads are lost in their own way, living in a world where terrible things happen and there are no easy answers. “A why without an answer,” Mads thinks, “is the worst kind of lost thing – a lost thing you never had to begin with.”
And then there are maps – the maps that can help lost travellers along the way. Billy’s mother’s favourite book was From The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs Basil E Frankweiler by E L Konigsburg, and he still carries around the map from within the novel – a floor plan of the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art, where the two characters in the book run away to. Mixed-Up Files becomes a touchstone for Mads and Billy, and this novel – deviating from Caletti’s usual tendency to write in the first person – uses the same ‘God voice’ that Konigsburg adopts, allowing us to see two rounded, imperfect characters trying to figure out how to deal with the different kinds of grief that hit us in life – and how to handle the love that sometimes feels too scary or fragile to trust.
Caletti’s prose is fresh and quirky without ever getting irritating; optimistic without being saccharine. As in her other YA novels, the teenage protagonists being the central focus doesn’t mean that the others – the adults, the children, and the dogs – in their world aren’t carefully characterised as well. Fans of Gayle Forman’s I Was Here or Jennifer Niven’s All The Bright Places should pick this one up.
This sophisticated YA novel by the prolific Seattle-based Deb Caletti, who’s produced a book a year for over a decade, is set near the water, and drowning both metaphorically and literally is at its heart. On a morning swim, Mads encounters a dead body and pulls it to shore, an experience that pushes her further into the depression that she’s struggling with. She becomes obsessed with the drowned woman, who threw herself off a nearby bridge, and goes to her old home – where she meets her nineteen-year-old son, Billy, for the first but not the last time.
Billy is a decent guy, but haunted by his mother’s death and the years of upset before that; now he lives with his unsympathetic grandmother and steals badly-treated dogs from their owners, then deposits them at the shelter he works with, claiming that they’re ‘lost’. Without hammering the point home, we can see that both he and Mads are lost in their own way, living in a world where terrible things happen and there are no easy answers. “A why without an answer,” Mads thinks, “is the worst kind of lost thing – a lost thing you never had to begin with.”
And then there are maps – the maps that can help lost travellers along the way. Billy’s mother’s favourite book was From The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs Basil E Frankweiler by E L Konigsburg, and he still carries around the map from within the novel – a floor plan of the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art, where the two characters in the book run away to. Mixed-Up Files becomes a touchstone for Mads and Billy, and this novel – deviating from Caletti’s usual tendency to write in the first person – uses the same ‘God voice’ that Konigsburg adopts, allowing us to see two rounded, imperfect characters trying to figure out how to deal with the different kinds of grief that hit us in life – and how to handle the love that sometimes feels too scary or fragile to trust.
Caletti’s prose is fresh and quirky without ever getting irritating; optimistic without being saccharine. As in her other YA novels, the teenage protagonists being the central focus doesn’t mean that the others – the adults, the children, and the dogs – in their world aren’t carefully characterised as well. Fans of Gayle Forman’s I Was Here or Jennifer Niven’s All The Bright Places should pick this one up.
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March 24, 2016Thank you so much to the publisher for the ARC.
An eye-opening look into depression, suicide, family dynamics, serendipity, and how two lost souls find each other and fall in love. A journey that will leave readers cheering for the characters and hoping that they'll find a happy future together.
Depression is a serious topic and Deb Caletti holds a spotlight to it by intertwining the lives of two teens in an emotional, honest, heartbreaking and healing journey. Madison has a needy, self-absorbed, demanding mother who centers her life around her daughter, expecting her to be her best friend. She's also mapped out Madison's life by making her a partner in her real estate business.
Billy is a teen living with his cranky, verbally abusive grandma. His mom suffered from depression and when she killed herself by jumping off a bridge, Billy grieves deeply and is a lost soul.
Both Madison and Billy have a strong desire to save others—Billy works at an animal shelter and Madison babysits a little girl with messed up parents. They definitely understand each other.
Things I loved:
1. Madison's aunt and uncle—they really care about her. And she needs them. I love how they stand up for her
2. Billy's gentle ways and how he cares for and rescues animals
3. Madison's love for the child she babysits for
4. How Madison and Billy find strength to follow their own paths
5. Integrating The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler into the story
6. Sweet romance. I definitely felt the chemistry between these characters and looked forward to watching it develop and sizzle
7. A hopeful ending
Definitely recommended for YA realistic contemporary fans!
An eye-opening look into depression, suicide, family dynamics, serendipity, and how two lost souls find each other and fall in love. A journey that will leave readers cheering for the characters and hoping that they'll find a happy future together.
Depression is a serious topic and Deb Caletti holds a spotlight to it by intertwining the lives of two teens in an emotional, honest, heartbreaking and healing journey. Madison has a needy, self-absorbed, demanding mother who centers her life around her daughter, expecting her to be her best friend. She's also mapped out Madison's life by making her a partner in her real estate business.
Billy is a teen living with his cranky, verbally abusive grandma. His mom suffered from depression and when she killed herself by jumping off a bridge, Billy grieves deeply and is a lost soul.
Both Madison and Billy have a strong desire to save others—Billy works at an animal shelter and Madison babysits a little girl with messed up parents. They definitely understand each other.
Things I loved:
1. Madison's aunt and uncle—they really care about her. And she needs them. I love how they stand up for her
2. Billy's gentle ways and how he cares for and rescues animals
3. Madison's love for the child she babysits for
4. How Madison and Billy find strength to follow their own paths
5. Integrating The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler into the story
6. Sweet romance. I definitely felt the chemistry between these characters and looked forward to watching it develop and sizzle
7. A hopeful ending
Definitely recommended for YA realistic contemporary fans!
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May 16, 2016The Teen Librarian has been hearing about this book for a while now. In fact, it's been on her "to-read" list since she first read a review about it (she can't remember if it was School Library Journal or VOYA or some other professional source, but she doesn't suppose it matters). And, of course, she thinks the cover is beautiful! She's kind of embarrassed to admit this is why she read the review, the review that made her want to read the book, in the first place. She knows better, of course. She knows a pretty cover should not be the sole reason to judge a book. But she still does it. More often than she's willing to admit. So be it! Everyone judges books by their cover.
There's a wait to get the book. A wait for it to be published, a wait for the library system to acquire it, and a wait for the Inter-library Loan System to get it to her. But finally it arrives in her hands. And she begins reading right away.
And she finds that, for all her anticipation, she can't get into the book.
Ok... This review is a true story. I wanted to like this book. I did! And I really tried. And I'm sure it's a lovely story. After all, the initial review was glowing! As are many of the reviews here on Goodreads. But the writing style, for me, was kind of off-putting. The whole book (at least the part I read) was written in present tense. And that was weird for me. I've read books like this before. Some have been wonderful. Some have been favorites. But in this case, the present tense didn't work. It made the story (and the characters) feel distant and detached, as if the author herself wasn't really into it.
There's a wait to get the book. A wait for it to be published, a wait for the library system to acquire it, and a wait for the Inter-library Loan System to get it to her. But finally it arrives in her hands. And she begins reading right away.
And she finds that, for all her anticipation, she can't get into the book.
Ok... This review is a true story. I wanted to like this book. I did! And I really tried. And I'm sure it's a lovely story. After all, the initial review was glowing! As are many of the reviews here on Goodreads. But the writing style, for me, was kind of off-putting. The whole book (at least the part I read) was written in present tense. And that was weird for me. I've read books like this before. Some have been wonderful. Some have been favorites. But in this case, the present tense didn't work. It made the story (and the characters) feel distant and detached, as if the author herself wasn't really into it.
September 21, 2025
It’s a shame, the way you always have to lose stuff to get other stuff.
I found this book to be a beautiful representation of how losses can add up and how one event can change you perspective (and sometimes your entire life). I get why people may not have liked this: the omnipresent third person narration can give the book a clinical take at times, but for me I think it makes the book have a whole picture.
Essential Maps for the Lost follows a girl named Mads (short for Madison), who while swimming one day find a body of woman in the water. The woman had committed suicide by drowning. This event makes Mads rethink her entire life…her mother isn’t always stable so Mads has been in an accelerated college program to become a realtor. But now she isn’t sure about what she wants, should she continue to take care of her mom? What would happen if Mads herself died?
She ends up seeking out the dead woman’s son Billy, hoping to find a way to learn more about why this woman decided to take her own life. Obviously things get complicated when the two begin to fall for each other. Mads and Billy learn that they can help each other more than they could ever know.
I found this book to be a beautiful representation of how losses can add up and how one event can change you perspective (and sometimes your entire life). I get why people may not have liked this: the omnipresent third person narration can give the book a clinical take at times, but for me I think it makes the book have a whole picture.
Essential Maps for the Lost follows a girl named Mads (short for Madison), who while swimming one day find a body of woman in the water. The woman had committed suicide by drowning. This event makes Mads rethink her entire life…her mother isn’t always stable so Mads has been in an accelerated college program to become a realtor. But now she isn’t sure about what she wants, should she continue to take care of her mom? What would happen if Mads herself died?
She ends up seeking out the dead woman’s son Billy, hoping to find a way to learn more about why this woman decided to take her own life. Obviously things get complicated when the two begin to fall for each other. Mads and Billy learn that they can help each other more than they could ever know.
June 27, 2017
This happens to be my second novel that involves doggies (The Unexpected Everything was the first one) in the last two weeks and it was my favorite aspect of the tale.
It took me a while to get into the story, mainly because of the writing but as the novel went on I flew through it and started to love the characters, however, it would have been better with one POV. The prose was very lyrical, most of all in the first chapter, and it takes a bit to get into that, at least for me.
The main love interest and second POV, Billy, works a rescue shelter and in his off time steals dogs away from abusive owners. And I also loved Mads, and how the author used the novel From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, as part of the plot, I loved that novel s a child.
Once again I was expecting a summer read and instead found my heart hurting, I need to read the blurbs before I assume anything about contemporaries.
I recommend checking this out with you enjoy Caletti's writing.
April 26, 2016
Really a 3.5. I wouldn't suggest this as a teen's introduction to Deb Caletti's writing. More for the serious reader.
Told in the alternating voices of Mads (immobilized by her mother's depression and her father's abandonment) and Billy (the eternal optimist believing that it only takes the love and care of one person to improve your life), two lost souls connected by their love of a book and their struggles with living with a depressed mother. Both are keeping secrets which threaten the relationship--Billy is hiding his mother's suicide which Mads already knows about because she is hiding that she is the one who discovered his mother's body in the lake.
Because both characters are dealing with grief and the collateral damage of depression this is not an easy read. Billy's hopeful and sometimes funny take on life engages the reader--you just want him to win in life so you keep reading for the happy ending that Billy foresees.
Told in the alternating voices of Mads (immobilized by her mother's depression and her father's abandonment) and Billy (the eternal optimist believing that it only takes the love and care of one person to improve your life), two lost souls connected by their love of a book and their struggles with living with a depressed mother. Both are keeping secrets which threaten the relationship--Billy is hiding his mother's suicide which Mads already knows about because she is hiding that she is the one who discovered his mother's body in the lake.
Because both characters are dealing with grief and the collateral damage of depression this is not an easy read. Billy's hopeful and sometimes funny take on life engages the reader--you just want him to win in life so you keep reading for the happy ending that Billy foresees.
February 3, 2017
The novel confused me. I couldn't understand all the deep thinking. I couldn't follow the deep thinking. Caletti had the right idea for the story, but I feel like she just couldn't deliver the story well enough. I was confused from the start.
Essential Maps for the Lost is about Mads and Billy. Billy's mother jumped off a bridge and died. Mads found Billy's mother in a lake dead. This is the story about a forbidden love between Mads and Billy.
Essential Maps for the Lost is an appropriate name for the novel. They both are, basically, lost in sadness and depression until they meet each other. I think Billy and Mads relationship is very cute. The delivery of the novel is not just quite right.
Essential Maps for the Lost is about Mads and Billy. Billy's mother jumped off a bridge and died. Mads found Billy's mother in a lake dead. This is the story about a forbidden love between Mads and Billy.
Essential Maps for the Lost is an appropriate name for the novel. They both are, basically, lost in sadness and depression until they meet each other. I think Billy and Mads relationship is very cute. The delivery of the novel is not just quite right.
September 9, 2019
As far as stereotypical teen romances go, this one is decent. Deb Caletti's writing never fails to reveal her intimate understanding of the human heart, and this book, like all her others, provides some genuinely lovely and illuminating passages. As far as the storyline goes, however, it's undeniably lacking. The plot meanders from one unlikely event to another without ever really going anywhere. Mads is boring, Billy is unrealistic, and their relationship just never seems to make as much sense as they think it does. It's not awful, but it's definitely not her best.
May 18, 2016
Although kind of cliché, it wasn't bad. It's the classic "troubled girl meets troubled boy" with a dash of "intertwined fate", but it's still well-written. It deals with issues like unstable homes, mental illness, and the effects they can have on others. It shows how difficult it is for some people to leave unsupportive or neglectful families because sometimes their family is all they have, or they are all their family has.
April 22, 2016
just stick all these words inside me forever and let me know them and live them amen
March 9, 2019
Absolutely beautiful. Probably my second favorite book of all time.
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