Upstream

by Melissa Lion

Marty’s small town in Alaska is the most beautiful place in the world. There she and her beloved boyfriend, Steven, can walk through fields of fireweed, explore the wild, and tie pink floozy fishing lures to catch the salmon that swim upstream. But when she starts her senior year, Marty must return to school by herself. Without Steven. Something happened during the summer that changed things forever.

It’s a small town and people are starting to talk; Marty can feel their stares and hear their whispers. But they weren’t there and they don’t know. Only Marty knows what really happened, and it’s something she must never, ever tell.


From the Hardcover edition.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Teen, Contemporary, Grief, Death, Realistic Fiction

149 pages, Paperback

First published May 10, 2005

About the author

Melissa Lion is a novelist and book critic. Her two novels, Swollen and Upstream were published by Random House. Her third novel is expected out next year. Her work has appeared in Santa Monica Review, Other Voices and an anthology titled, The Crucifix is Down. Upstream was recently optioned for a motion picture.

Reviews

[Hannah Fabry · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Upstream" was a very well written book, and it was hard to put down. I really enjoyed the Alaskan setting description! The setting of the book reminded me of my family that lives in Alaska. The main character, Marty, and her sister have a very strong relationship. I relate to the main character and her sister's relationship with my brother and myself. I really enjoyed that the book stayed more of a personal story rather than a drama. "Upstream" is about a highschool girl's boyfriend that dies durring the summer. Marty has to start her senior year without her boyfriend, everyone stares at her and the rumor wheel spreads. Only Marty knows what really happened to her boyfriend and she plans on keeping it that way. Marty keeps having memories of them together and she keeps getting upset when he is brought up in a conversation. You don't find out what really happens to Marty's boyfriend until the end of the book. What I really liked about this book is that Melissa Lion, the author, gives no clues or hints to what happened to Marty's boyfriend; it's a complete shock in the end. I recommend this book for anyone above the age of 13 and more on the mature side.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Melissa Lion’s Upstream is deceptively simple. Yes, it’s an easy read, but beneath the smooth prose is a deep story of sorrow and survival. Marty is grieving the death of her boyfriend Steven, and trying to protect the painful secret surrounding his death.

Even though the main character is coping with the death of a loved one, Upstream is not an entirely gloomy tale. The reader gets to watch Marty heal in various ways. Throughout the story, Marty’s relationships with her mother, sisters, father, and boss/friend Katherine strengthen and grow. The setting, a small town in Alaska’s wilderness, also serves as a calming source and reminder of beauty in Marty’s life. Additionally there is laughter along the way. On more than one occasion, I laughed aloud along with Marty.

Why should you read Upstream? “Do it for the whale.” Just kidding! That’s just one of the lines that made me laugh when I read this haunting and charming story.

[Madelyn Ham · Rating 4 out of 5]

So when I started this book I didn't really like it. This girl named Marty had lost her boyfriend that summer, but it didn't tell me so I wondering what happened to him. She was very quiet at school and wasnt really talking to people. She works at the movie theater and a new person bought it and her name is Katherine. Katherine is from California and is kind of young. So they start talking and they become friends and everything. So later on in the book I found out how her boyfriends Steven died. So they went out and he was teaching her how to shot a gun and she missed and hit him. But if they were smart enought they would have known you dont shot a gun when someone is down there. Plus they should have it on saftey to right before they shot the gun. Overall I thought the book was good.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this, mainly because of the setting, which is a small town in Alaska. For me, the relations between the characters and their development stood out more than the story about Steven. I especially enjoyed the relation between Martha an Katherine, a Californian women who buys the old movie theatre. This book touched on the feeling of simultaneously searching for new experiences and wanting to stay in your familiar and safe place very well. Very reletable, even though I do not live in a small Alaskan town. Unfortunately.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was nice but it wasn't amazing. I'm not saying that it's a bad book because it's a very good book but the ending was sort of expected and it was nothing too exciting.
I also didn't really care for Dottie and Sean's relationship. The fact that their parents are so uncaring about them sneaking out is weird to me but maybe it's because my parents are really strict or maybe it's because I don't live in Alaska, a place where apparently people don't lock their doors. But still, I didn't really care for it.
I guess Steven and Martha's relationship was nice but there wasn't much explanation about anything. There so was little that was said about their relationship. Not that I want a shit ton of lovey-dovey stuff, the book was definitely lacking in something and I just needed something more.
I didn't really understand the situation with Martha's parents. I don't really understand why the dad won't stay at home. Does he need to be alone or does he think his family doesn't want him around?
Also, I wish there was more explanation about Katherine. In the end, Martha reveals to her about her past but Katherine doesn't offer any type of explanation. I also wish there was a epilogue because it made the story really fake and engineered. I like when you can imagine what happens in the end but the way the epilogue was written, it sounded very, I dunno, artificial.
I really did enjoy reading this book but overall, I needed something more and this book didn't offer it. It is pretty short and very straight to the point. Okay, see you next time! BYE!!!

[Bethany · Rating 3 out of 5]

I undertook the book because one of my patrons found it confusing. I understood why. The protagonist moves seamlessly between present day and a painful prior experience seamlessly, making a less skilled reader unsure of the narrative's progress. While I had no trouble navigating the narrative, I soon figured out that the author's process for developing suspense didn't make sense to an emerging reader. Once the author revealed the one inciting memory that had to be protected or covered up by the protagonist' guilt, I for one yawned without surprise. I wouldn't recommend this book, but I wouldn't dissuade an interested party, either. The relationship illustrated between the protagonist and her boyfriend was interesting because it purported the notion that a teenaged male has the maturity to forge a separate future path from his girlfriend. A nice idea, but I'd think rare for young people native of Alaska and deeply connected. Or anywhere in the contiguous US. My brother did separate himself from his girlfriend when she left for college and he was still in high school, I think he was a very rare breed.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was one that really got me into it. I found it very hard to put down and when I finished it, I sat there for a minute staring blankly ahead of me trying to understand why the author would stop there, it was such a good read that I wanted to read more. The intense descriptions of the Alaska setting and the close to home feelings portrayed by the main character are so incredible that it was hard not to feel as if the story was unfolding right in front of your eyes. The author did an amazing job capturing feelings and emotions and giving them to the reader to feel too, simply amazing.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautifully written. The story is much better than the publishers synopsis alludes to. Transported me to Alaska for the couple hours it took me to read.

[Mike Bahl · Rating 4 out of 5]

A small, quiet, sad book. Not too much, not over the top, but still wallowing. Comfortable in its sadness.

[Scarlett · Rating 4 out of 5]

I rated “upstream” four stars because I enjoyed the story, and found the writing to be amazing. One reason I feel this way is because the main character, Marty, felt so real and reliable. When she was upset, everything she did, said, and thought felt real. Felt human. I also loved diving deeper into the plot and the mystery hidden inside. What happened to Marty’s boyfriend Steven? The way the truth was slowly revealed through thoughts, emotion, and memory kept me hooked for the entirety of the book. Like when Marty thinks about the whale body she found and how she helped restore the bones, she can’t help but think of Steven. She met him during that project and a little more is revealed to us each time. Finally, I loved the way the book showed that not everything is how it seems and some people can be hiding dark secrets. The book was suspenseful but not scary which is a mix I enjoy.

[Mercedes Tellez · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book takes place up in Alaska! This high school girl named Marty is like any normal girl. Her family is made up of two other girl siblings and a mother that works for a women's road construction union thing. Her father is in the Coast Guard but is never really around for the girls' life. She goes to school & has crushes. One of her crushes, Steven, she eventually falls in love with. Steven would be described as the son every father wanted. He can hunt, fish, fix cars etc. He in return falls in love with Marty. They are PERFECT for each other. He gives her CDs and is literally the sweetest guy anyone could fall in love with. He IS the perfect boyfriend. Something happened over the summer that changed the town that they lived in. Marty & Steven went into the wilderness for a weekend, like they had many times before, but this time it was different. Let's just say that Steven ends up passing away. Marty's life is changed for life. At the theatre she works at, the new owner from California is so down to earth, they mesh together perfectly. They are pretty much best friends! Marty goes through her Senior year trying to find herself & CONSTANTLY thinking about Steven. What he looks like, memories that she has that every girl wishes they had. In the end, she gets accepted to a university in Hawaii.
I would defiantly recommend this book! It is such a short book that keeps you on edge since Marty didn't come out and tell what happen in the beginning of the book. Each page made you want more! It made me want to keep reading to see if her heart will ever heal! It's a romantic, but tragic book that really connects with ones emotions.
I believe that the reason that the author wrote this book & the theme is to show that no matter what happens in life, life is still going to move on wether you're ready or not. For example: In the beginning of the book, she is worried that everyone at school is talking about what happen, but she eventually realizes that people have moved on and the tragic event doesn't matter anymore. Also, another example would be when she finally realizes that she should go to college since that is what she truly needs. No one is going to throw her a pity party anymore about what happened over the summer. She knows that to get better & to free herself from guilt, she must leave and find herself somewhere else.
Lastly, the author I believe wanted to let others know that they are not alone when it comes to tragic accidents. People shouldn't blame themselves for something they may or may have not been able to control.

[Sarah H. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Upstream is quite a good book. The main character is this small town Alaskan girl named Marty. She is going to start her senior year of high school by herself without her boyfriend. Know one knows exactly what happened to him. Only Marty knows what actually happened. She was the only one that was there that saw him die. She wants to leave her beautiful Alaskan town to leave everything behind. Just to forget everything that happened that awful day. You want to keep on reading to find out what actually happened to him. It doesn't clearly say he died from.... It is embedded in the book through the story.

I recommend this book to girl's who want to read about what someone has to go through when they have lost their boyfriend forever. I really liked this book a lot. The author did a good job describing how much Marty loved her boyfriend and everything that happened to him was an accident. The only bad thing about this book is that it was a little short, i'm not going to lie. Other then that being kind of a problem, this book was good. It just shows you and example of how people in real life want to just run away from everything and that doesn't just happen in movies. I would recommend this book for you to read when you have just some spare time and want to read.

[Lily · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book a lot because it had so many metaphors and deeper meanings. I think that this book was also extremely well written. I highly recommend the author, Melissa Lion, I believe that her writing style is extremely unique and fun to read. One of my favorite things about this book is the metaphor made my comparing a whale to the concept of moving on and forgiving. It is actually an interesting concept because the main character, Marty, met her boyfriend because of a whale that had washed upon shore, and later on we find out that she accidentally killed him when he was teaching her to hunt. So the question she is challenged with, is does she blame the whale for bringing them together and allowing her to end his life, or does she thank it for the time they had together? The whale kind of became a symbol of this woman's journey of letting go and not forgetting her love, but not using it as a reason to be sad all the time. This book is an excellent journey through one woman's love and the process of forgivness and learning not to blame.

[Maria Devito · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book shows the way of a young struggling teenager in Alaska. First off I didn't like how short the book was I thought that maybe if it was longer they could fit in a lot more about Martha's past and life.
What I liked about the book is that Martha is just a normal teenager with a middle class family that just wants to move on from a tragedy that happened to her. when Martha's boyfriend died she was the only one with him and as expected she is investigated for the possibility that it might have been her fault, which adds a little mystery to the story. What I loved the most about it is that Martha gives us little flashbacks of what her and her boyfriend used to do together and it is sad because now that he is dead Martha feels like she has no one. It is a short and sweet book with a little mystery, all together a good read.

[Conan Tigard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I felt for Marty, I truly did. For anyone to loose a love suddenly must be very hard. Upstream is an interesting tale of loss and coping with a little mystery thrown in to boot. Melissa Lion pens an interesting story about how a young woman would handle this situation.

What I liked about the storytelling was the way that little bits of the mystery of Steven's death were slowly revealed. We never get the full picture until the end of the book, which keep the reader guessing. what happened to Steven? Was it an accident? Was it murder? How did he die? Why did he die?

I like the interaction between Katherine and Marty and how Marty needed that outside intervention to see how to handle her tragedy. I quite enjoyed Upstream by Melissa Lion.

Overall, Upstream is a great read and shouldn't be missed by any lover of good fiction.

I rated this book an 8 out of 10.

[Sommer Ann McCullough · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the messages in this book. It's one of those novels that even after you've turned the last page and returned it to the library, the haunting storyline will pop up in your mind months later. The achingly true voice of the heroine attaches to your soul, and you feel her struggles within you. You can tell that she is real, that her problems are hard to deal with, that she had many more issues that just life to deal with. Incorprating many sub-plots including a boyfriend who died, a new woman at the place she works, her sister's relationship, and deciding where to attend college, this novel spans many issues. I loved every moment of this book, and know many others will too.

[Jose E. Santiago · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really sad book that would help the reader see things different. The main character, Marty, lost her boyfriend. No one knows why, at the beginning but as you read to through the novel Marty reveals things you don't expect to find out and that would answer your question on why Steven, Marty's boyfriend, died. However, she doesn't listen to what people say and continues with her normal life. She meets new people, people that know how she feels, but at the end of the day she ends up recovering from that lost without her knowing. It would be nice reading the next book novel, Epilogue, also by Melissa Lion.

[Breanna P.]

this book was about a girl who's boyfriend died and and nobody knows exactly what happend to him accept marty! S he wont tell anyone she lives in a nice small town and wants to leave to leave her child hood and good memories behind because it all reminds her of him.

I would recommend this book to anyone who would like a mystery and wonder what is going to happen then find out at the end. The best thing is about this book is that there is no clues or hints on what will happen at the end of the book!

[Katie R. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've read this before and I knew it was sad but I didn't really remember exactly what happened. It all started coming back to me as I read it again though.

I was also fighting back tears the entire time. They poured out eventually, sad books will do that to you.

I found it to be much more emotional for me this this time around, mostly because I know Katherine's right when she says, "Someone always has to leave."

I know who it would be and I don't want that to happen. Hence the tears.

[Megan M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a really good book. It takes a few hours to read and it is a good cry.
It takes place in the beautiful setting of Alaska. It's about this girl's boyfriend who dies and she keeps having memories of them together. You don't know how he dies exactly, but it reveals it throughout the book. She is depressed during the whole thing, but with her two other sisters there, her mom, and a really good friend from California, she gets through the horror of her life.

[Kate Lacy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lion is an energetic writer---she does not wait for us to rephrase her thoughts. First person, we are well within the character of Marty and lost in her sorrows. This is not a book for the impatient, nor for teens younger than 13-14.
The ending, well, you judge. Neither happy nor complete, the ending is what it is. Reality and years of lives move ever forward. Do not miss this book if you love YA stories.

[Carrie Rolph · Rating 2 out of 5]

I checked this out because the cover photo was pretty. Otherwise, it's worth reading solely for the relationship between the sisters (I think I could count on one hand the number of good sisterly relationships I've read) and you know, small town, quirky Alaska is always fun, but the rest of it was kind of blah.

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not quite sure how I came to pick this one up; it took me a little while to get into the rhythm of the book, but once I did I couldn't put it down until I'd finished it. I appreciated that the story never turned into a big drama, and stayed a smaller, personal story. The ending was well-played, and the sense of setting was impressive.

[Apsara · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was great in the beginning and then it just went mediocre.I felt obligated to finish the book because I had to know if the main character made it through. I definitely felt a connection with the family and somehow you find yourself hoping and cheering them on. I definitely don't recommend this as a must read but it's a simple no brainer book.

[Salsabrarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like the salmon that struggle upstream to get to their birthplace, Marty pushes through her grief after losing her boyfriend in an accident. Her family and the solid Alaska wilderness keep her grounded and in the world as she finds her way to a measure of peace and acceptance. Quiet but powerful; clean writing doesn't waste words.

[MaryAnn Harlan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was wishing I had a blog entry on this to reference but I don't. I preferred Swollen but truthfully I was surprised when I learned they were written by the same author. I think Upstream handles grief very well. For a slim book it packed a punch.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was thought-provoking, and filled with an underlying tension. You want to know the whole story, but you don't want to know the whole story. A wonderful book that shows how strong young adults can be and explores the importance of family and friends.

I really did like this book.

[Steph · Rating 4 out of 5]

Started reading this back in 2005 when it came out - the public library used to send out snippets of new books. It's kind of haunted me. So I decided to read it and it was really good. The images are lush and now I want to go to Alaska. Pretty gripping story...

[Jay Lopez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book, picked it up and finished it the same day. A simple yet so heart wrenching story. Martha's heart yearns for closure and does not get it until she accepts his death. But overall great book, has such a calm effect and overall essence.

[Erika · Rating 5 out of 5]

i wanted to know what had happened to marty from page one and was held by the tale the whole time. it is romantic, feisty and full of hope that life does go on. lovely.