The Epic Story of Every Living Thing

by Deb Caletti

From the award-winning author of A Heart in a Body in The World comes a gorgeous and fiercely feminist young adult novel. When a teen travels to Hawaii to track down her sperm donor father, she discovers the truth about him, about the sunken shipwreck that’s become his obsession, and most of all about herself.

Harper Proulx has lived her whole life with unanswered questions about her anonymous sperm donor father. She's convinced that without knowing him, she can't know herself. When a chance Instagram post connects Harper to a half sibling, that connection yields many more and ultimately leads Harper to uncover her father's identity.

So, fresh from a painful breakup and still reeling with anxiety that reached a lifetime high during the pandemic, Harper joins her newfound half siblings on a voyage to Hawaii to face their father. The events of that summer, and the man they discover—a charismatic deep-sea diver obsessed with solving the mystery of a fragile sunken shipwreck—will force Harper to face some even bigger Who is she? Is she her DNA, her experiences, her successes, her failures? Is she the things she loves—or the things she hates? Who she is in dark times? Who she might become after them?

Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Audiobook, Teen, Coming Of Age

432 pages, Paperback

First published September 13, 2022

About the author

Deb 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.

Reviews

[Jenna]

DNF

Just couldn’t not get into this

[Patty (IheartYA311) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It's written well and easy to follow. It hits deep in the emotions.

[Karyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had really high expectations for this book, but sadly, it just didn't fully work for me.

Let's start with the fact that Harper is a donor conceived ( or is she?? ). At this point, I've read around 15 books that feature donor conception, and once you've read a certain number, there are so many overlaps between them all. There's the overbearing mother, the fat donor-conceived daughter, the irresponsible donor who has helped create an absurd amount of children, and so many more tropes, all of which combine to create a perception of donor conception that, frankly, makes me feel embarrassed to be donor conceived. I want my identity to be represented in the books I read, but if this is the type of representation I'm getting, do I really want it? At this point, it feels like donor conception is being used solely to sell books -- here's this crazy experience that few people can relate too and isn't the "normal" way of doing things, doesn't that sound like a great premise for a book?

But even ignoring discussion of donor conception, I found this book to be a bit of a slog to get through. I can deal with an unlikeable narrator, but Harper's internal monologue was trying too hard to capture what most adults think teenagers sound like, and the book as a whole was very "phone bad, book good." I've also discovered I do not like books that feature the COVID pandemic as a theme. While THE EPIC STORY OF EVERY LIVING THING does acknowledge that COVID isn't over, it simultaneously stressed the danger the virus created in our daily lives while also completely ignoring the fact that there's a pandemic in-universe?

If you'd like a recommendation for books featuring donor-conceived characters, I highly recommend SPARROW by Sarah Moon and YOU'RE WELCOME, UNIVERSE by Natasha Friend. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Meigan]

THE EPIC STORY OF EVERY LIVING THING is the story of Harper Proulx, who embarks on a journey of personal truth and growth when she discovers her mother has been lying to her for her entire life about her sperm donor father. When she connects with a half-sibling over the internet, it’s just the catalyst she needs to travel to Hawaii to meet her father, learn about her paternal side, and hopefully find the answers she’s been searching for.

Emotionally charged and deeply moving at times, this was such a fantastic read from start to finish that made me question plenty of things in my own life and imagine what I would do if I were in Harper’s shoes. Would I want to know who fathered me? Would I be as brave as she was and travel halfway across the US to find him? Would I be emotionally wrecked if he didn’t want to have anything to do with me? Harper was a fantastically brave young woman, and I loved her willingness to be incredibly vulnerable in order to seek the answers that will make her feel whole.

All told, I adored this book and I adored Harper. This book will make you laugh, make you think, maybe make you shed a tear or two as Harper searches for answers about who she truly is. Highly recommend.


*Many thanks to TBR and Beyond Tours and the publisher for providing a digital arc for an Instagram tour.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 Stars

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I didn't go in expecting much. I never do go into a purely contemporary YA read with high expectations. They're usually just "fine," and I expected that here, too. But this book is surprisingly lovely. The narration is slow to unfold. The characters and settings take their time to develop, and the end picture is surprisingly poetic. Not everyone will like it--probably for the same reasons I did--but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

My full review is available at Gateway Reviews.

Note: I was provided with an ARC by the publisher through Netgalley and Edelweiss+ in exchange for an honest review. All opinions here are my own.

[Carrie Cross · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the markers of a great novel is watching its characters change and grow throughout the book. In The Epic Story of Every Living Thing, each character matures emotionally as you savor every page, waiting impatiently to find out what happens next. The protagonist, Harper, initially spends most of her time taking and posting selfies on social media. She treats her loving boyfriend, Ezra, like an unpaid photographer, and compulsively monitors Instagram likes and comments, and adding heart emojis: click, click, click. Until something on the Internet blows her world apart.

How would you feel if you found out your overprotective, uptight mother had lied to you your entire life about the origin of your “sperm donor” father? And what if you discovered that he had fathered, say, 41 other children, that are your half-brothers and sisters? Fast forward to a Hawaiian island where several of the half-siblings meet up to get to know their father—a scruffy, pot-smoking scuba dive teacher who reveals a century-old mystery that ties the family together.

Hannah overcomes her anxiety about trying new things as she learns to scuba dive, and explores the wonders of the ocean. The family discovers a sunken shipwreck that contains amazing keys to their past. When an accident cuts her off from social media, Hannah learns how to live in the moment and embraces family, nature, and the epic story of every living thing.

After I finished this novel, I didn’t even pick up the next book in my Amazon pile. I just had to sit for a while with my eyes closed, thinking about the characters, and wondering where they went from there.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Knowing your full true story, telling your full true story, living your full true story--it seems like the most basic right of every human being." Harper has been raised by her mother and has never known her father or even very much about him. She's a typical teen, absorbed by her phone and posting pictures on social media, sometimes to the point of ignoring her friends and family. Then she gets a message from someone who says she looks exactly like someone else he knows, and before she knows it, Harper is finding out more than she ever imagined. Caletti poses a lot of questions for Harper, and for all of us, about identity. Who are each of us? How did we get this way? Is it nature or nurture or a combination? We all evolve and change throughout our lives, so these questions apply to all of us. Harper finds a strength within herself that another person can't give to you, that can't be internalized by engraving it on a bracelet. It's about more than a teen learning to put her phone down, it's about a teen who is coming into her own and becoming her own person rather than the person everyone else has been expecting her to be. It's a lovely story and we can all learn a bit as we watch Harper search for her answers to these questions. Review from e-galley.

[Janet]

Sigh. I think I like this as much or more than One Great Lie which is one of those books I think about a odd times. Keep it up, please. This old lady reader who teaches YA lit and WNDB will continue to be your fan.

[DaNae · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another Caletti masterpiece. This may be my favorite of hers. I love how she explored family.

[Rummanah (Books in the Spotlight) · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm usually up for a solid realistic story about self growth and self discovery. The Epic Story of Every Living Thing had an enticing plot and was well reviewed, but unfortunately for me it fell very flat. I was ultimately so bored and frustrated with this novel that I stopped caring around the halfway mark.

Harper Proulx's life revolves around her boyfriend Ezra, what ifs, Instagram, and comments from her driven single mother who likes to show her off as a 'well done' project. Like many teens obsessed with social media, Harper gets tiny boosts of confidence when she receives likes and comments on her Instagram posts. When she comes across a photo of Dario who shares similar physical features with her, she beings to wonder about MF--her Maybe Father. She reaches out to Dario, the two meet up, and she realizes that her mother has withheld information from her. Soon she is swept off to Hawaii with her other half siblings to find their sperm donor father.

I had a lot of issues with this book, but the main one that stood out to me was Harper. I found Harper to be an exasperating and needy teen. For half of the book, Harper is fused to her phone. She treats her boyfriend Ezra like her Instagram lackey, transporting her equipment and chauffeuring her to locations that would guarantee her more likes and comments on her posts. She does not open up to her boyfriend nor tells him anything about her finding her half siblings even though she is very involved in his family. So when Ezra broke up with her, I actually cheered for him. I couldn't believe how Harper thought this breakup came out of nowhere.

My other issue with this book is that the pacing is quite slow. The first half of the book is all about finding Harper's MF. The second half is supposedly Harper's epiphany, but it didn't feel earned. One minute her face is glued to her phone near the ocean, then her phone slips into the water, and then boom! her eyes open in wonder about the world around her.

I did, however, like her half siblings who all had different personalities. I didn't find her father nor her mother actually developed but they appeared more as caricatures. Her dad being a surfer boy who smokes pot and her neurotic mother who wants perfection because that's how she was raised.

I did not care for the details of the shipwreck as it took way too long to make a connection to the story. I also wondered why Covid-19 wasn't stated in the book even though there are plenty of discussions about masks, quarantining, and vaccines. As far as I know the pandemic isn't trademarked? Also why was the book written in the weird third person narrative?

I love stories about families, but this was an absolute swing and a miss for me. Looking back on it, I wondered why I even finished it. This should have been my first dnf (did not finish) book of the year. Your mileage with Harper may vary.

[Maggie Carr · Rating 3 out of 5]

If I've learned anything from being a Deb Caletti reader it is this- often her plot and sub plots are fighting for the spotlight, all powerful to the point distraction? I easily could have read this story as two completely separate storylines. 1. Of a set of sperm donor siblings discovering each other and tracking down their father while also learning about themselves. 2. A teen pov time slip with the ship logs alternating chapters while fighting to protect its historical significance and growing to love real life away from the infinite scroll. Mix the two together and add in thoughts, feelings, fears, and pandemic panic and it all becomes a soup.

[Ari (Books. Libraries. Also, cats.)]

can white people stop writing books set in Hawai'i that center white people, have essentially no Native Hawaiians on-page, and make little to no acknowledgement of Hawaiian history, the negative impacts of tourism, and the legacy of colonialism?

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

There's just something about a Deb Caletti book that is so comforting, the familiarity is like wearing your favorite sweater... I like that this one revisits anxiety like in The Nature of Jade, which I first read as a senior in high school... A totally different story, as it also incorporates the stresses of the pandemic, social media, in addition to Harper not knowing who her father is... I really liked the character growth of everyone in this novel...

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting coming-of-age story as Harper, fathered by an anonymous sperm donor, makes a chance connection through social media with a half-sibling. This connection leads to others and a group of newfound siblings travel to Hawaii to meet the man who fathered them. The story asks questions about nature vs nurture: are we a product of our DNA or our upbringing? It also explores relationships between teens and their parents. I also really liked the technology thread. What happens when we put down our phones, stop living for the 'Gram, and really live in the moment? I would recommend to readers who like a good family "drama."

[Lisa Gray · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just loved this book. Entertaining — but also commentary on underground bombs in Hawaii, how adoptees feel about sperm donor bio dads, and the effect that being a social media influencer has on the mind & spirit. Loved the story & characters.

[Karin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Started on audio and gave up. But reading print got me back into it and wound up giving me typical Caletti feels.

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this novel, especially how the author subtly wove historical events into a contemporary setting. A memorable, and well-written coming of age story.

[Spheal · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
Getting hit with the phone bad hammer for 400 pages

[LibraryLaur · Rating 4 out of 5]

Deb Caletti is one of the few YA authors I still read. This was another winner (minus all the F bombs, I am a middle-aged mom, after all).

*Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an e-galley in exchange for an honest review.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

This book is kinda hard to review because this book was kinda hard to read. Don’t mistake me, I think this book is beautiful and brilliant and full of Caletti’s signature prose, but as someone who struggles with anxiety this book got to me.

Caletti paints a faithful picture of anxiety here and it was almost too real. I have felt like Harper at points in my life (my anxiety doesn’t quite match hers) and while it was nice to see this aspect of myself represented, it could be hard to read at points.

I did still like it though, I love everything Caletti writes. This book was challenging and pushed me to think long and hard about my own anxiety. I thought the pandemic talk was going to scare me off (which terrified me because I don’t think I want to live in a world where Caletti’s writing didn’t appeal to me) but I think it was handled in a tasteful and minimal way. Caletti doesn’t erase the pandemic, but covers the topic with grace.

There were a couple things I didn’t love. I think the social media is bad narrative is a little tired and doesn’t work as well here as something else would have. I also found the first half to be a bit slow and I didn’t think I’d have to worry about corset discourse here, but alas this is my burden to bear. And all of this is why I couldn’t I’m good conscience rate this book 5 stars.

**update** After a lot of thought and consideration, I'm removing a half star from this review. I just... the things that I didn't love still really bothered me and I feel like I'm questioning if Caletti is falling out of my own personal favor. (Not me having an existential crisis over not absolutely loving this book)

[For The Novel Lovers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book Review

Title: The Epic Story of Every Living Thing by Deb Colette

Genre: Contemporary, Family, Drama

Rating: 3.75 Stars

Review: The opening to The Epic Story of Every Living Thing was interesting and while it wasn’t that exited I was drawn into the story. We are introduced to Harper who is your average self-conscious, anxious teenager obsessed with the way she looks and how others see her but there is something different that sets Harper apart and that is she is a speed donor baby who wants to know who her father is. Harper throughout her life has found a few others that look just like her and she knows they must be at least half-siblings but she doesn’t contact them, only keeps an eye on their social media profiles. Harper does well in school and has an amazing boyfriend in Ezra but I feel that she doesn’t appreciate him enough as she is constantly worrying about 100 different things and I can’t wait to see where this goes.

As we approach the 1/4 mark in the novel, I was really disliking Harper as a main character as she uses her anxiety as an excuse to treat people horribly and make herself feel better which isn’t nice at all. The first part of this is how she uses Ezra to make herself feel better even when he is showing off his prom outfit all she can think about is getting pictures of him to post on Instagram so her followers will tell her how lucky she is so she can actually feel that way. We can see how it affect Ezra and Harper is aware of it and does it anyway even though she knows he doesn’t like it. This is further shown when she contacts Dario, her half-brother and she treats him so badly. In their first conversation he lets slip that there are over 40 children from this speed donor and Harper is so overwhelmed that she hangs up which I understand but then she ignores him for days even though he is concerned about her. Then when she realises that Dario has met Simone she tears into him like he didn’t have the right to contact her even though she is also his half-sister. The only good thing to come out of this is that Harper and Dario meet for the first time and Harper understands how lonely she has been and Dario also has a picture of their father and his name, Beau Zane. However, everything up to this point has felt like a massive prologue meaning the pace is slow and I was more than a little bored.

As we cross the 1/4 mark in the novel, I was struggling to cope with Harper as a main character as she is so unlikeable to the point where she comes across as an asshole. She is constantly cutting off Dario and hurting him and even though she is aware of it she doesn’t fee, bad about it blaming her anxiety and distress rather than owning up to her appalling behaviour. This is shown even more when Ezra finally dumps her after on of her photo expeditions and I completely agree with him, for the entirety of their relationship we have seen Harper treated him more like an assistant than a boyfriend always wanting him to drive her somewhere or carry her equipment and then have the audacity to say she doesn’t know why he dumped her after she reveals that she has known about her siblings and father for several months and not even brought it up to him. She didn’t even have to tell him everything all she had to say was she was looking to track down her father and he would have supported her but she has hidden from him and lied to him repeatedly over the past few months so I can’t feel any sympathy for her when she is being a bad person and hiding behind her anxiety and insecurities as excuses for this behaviour. Dario, Wyatt and Simone have tracked down their father and learnt he is dive instructor which is why he moves around a lot and they want to go track him down since Wyatt’s family has a summer home near where they think he is currently staying but I have a feeling that Harper isn’t going to be on board and she is going to make the other feel bad for wanting to find him.

As we approach the halfway mark in the novel, the four children end up deciding to travel to Hawaii and after her breakup it is an impulsive decision on Harper’s part. Even telling her mother turned into a fight because of Harper and she didn’t even stop and consider that her feelings weren’t the only ones that mattered during this situation and when her mother asks for her to tell Beau nothing about does it finally click. The journey to Hawaii is nerve racking for most of them and they decide to spy on Beau’s house which results in some major bonding moments for these siblings. The next day they decide to go to the dive shack and introduce he selves to Beau if he is there which he obviously is and he is just as shocked and anxious as they are. This first meeting wasn’t all hugs and smiles but it’s wasn’t rejection either, I think that Beau genuinely blocked out the possibility that he might have kids somewhere out in the world and these four children in front of him all built him up in their minds and were a little disappointed when he didn’t meet those expectations but there is still a lot of hope in them that they might be able to form a bond with him the way they have done with each other. I really don’t get the significance of the ancient diary entries at the beginning of each chapter as they feel like they are telling an entirely different story and I am finding it a little distracting to be honest.

As we cross into the second half of the novel, there are some bumps in the beginning of the relationship between a father and his children which was nice to see that everything wasn’t immediately going to be perfect. Beau despite not being the marrying type wanted children of his own and decide to become a sperm donor to give something selfless to women that wanted children but couldn’t and he hoped that one day someone might come looking for him and he got four instead of one with many more out there. The initial couple of interaction between them all are messy and uncoordinated with hope and disappointment and possibly love all hanging the balance but they really begin to bond when Beau teaches them to dive, sharing something personal with them since it has been in his blood for generations. He also shares the impending disaster that will envelope his home since the navy wanted to detonate many unexplored bombs in the area regardless of how much wildlife it is going to kill and the old shipwreck it is going to destroy. The ship will be the hardest loss for Beau’s family since his father Tony was obsessed with learning the identity of the ship since he believed it to be Neptune’s Car.

As we approach the 3/4 mark in the novel, the ship is important since it links those opening segments of each chapter to the current story but it also gives the children a more concrete link to their father and his family and they decide they should dive on it. Being away from her phone since it drops into the ocean Harper has come to appreciate living in the moment and this gives her the opportunity to reconnect with Ezra who she hasn’t really spoken to since the breakup and really see him for who he is. She ends up apologising for her behaviour before now she sees how wrong it was. There is some sadness since they learn that their grandfather Tony died due to pandemic and his wife and son weren’t allowed to be with him during that time and they are going to lose a massive link to him when the bombs are set off and Harper wants to do something about it. I can’t wait to see them all five together and see where their relationship goes but I hope that Harper might be able to use some of the following she gained on social media to help with the current situation and maybe make a real life difference something she has never done before without worrying about all the ramifications and consequences. With less than a hundred pages left I was excited to see how Canetti was going to bring the novel to an end but I also didn’t really want it to end. Seeing the love, joy and heartbreak all these character share was infectious and despite not really liking Harper at first she really grew on me as the novel progressed.

As we cross into the final section of the novel, we see everything come together. While there isn’t much in terms of plot since the novel is mainly focused on the characters, their relationships and development it was nice to see a little action towards the end. Overall, I ended up liking this book despite hating Harper for the first half since she changes a lot in the second half as do the other characters. My favourite character by far was Beau and he was just a ,liveable, warm characters with realistic flaws but loved all his children, all 42 of them. Honestly I’ve never been a fan of contemporary books but these types of book are growing on me the older I get.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

In each and every book, Deb Caletti manages to break me down to the most basic of levels AND builds me back up to become a person filled with a greater sense of female empowerment, better insight, and a more positive outlook towards humanity. With The Epic Story of Every Living Thing, this feels especially true. Some of it is because it is a pandemic novel, and Harper stirs up all those same emotions that we all felt creeping out of our homes after lockdown, confused about the rules of wearing a mask, wondering what is safe and what is not. Part of it is the fact that Harper has anxiety, and Ms. Caletti is exceptionally good at portraying what it feels like to live with anxiety. For me, what struck me hardest of all is the domineering nature of Harper’s mother and the overbearing, highly regulated relationship they have. Harper’s story stirred up so many emotions that I had to take reading breaks to ease my own anxiety and turmoil.

What makes Ms. Caletti a stellar author though is not just her ability to allow readers to share in her character’s emotions but rather how she builds both her characters and her readers back up after dragging them down to the lowest of lows. As Harper learns to break the ties that bind, you simultaneously discover your own strengths. While Harper releases her fears, you relinquish yours. What once felt impossible now feels possible. It is a feat very few authors can accomplish, yet Ms. Caletti does it time and again. The Epic Story of Every Living Thing is simply the latest example of her greatness.

[Melynda Wangsness · Rating 2 out of 5]

"After millions of people do unique things, there aren’t a lot of unique things left."

An immature read that left a bad taste in my mind regarding what makes us who we are and what makes a family.

Harper comes off as the stereotypical teenager in the mind of an elder. The situations ooze dramatics and took away from Harper as a character and made her development harsh, sudden, and unbelievable.

In addition, the book relies on many unrelated and awe-attempting moments to fill it's pages. I found myself saying "Whale, that wasn't necessary." a few times throughout this read. This caused the story to drag along a bit too much.

The way relationships between Harper and her mother, her donor father, and the half siblings are portrayed is interesting to say the least. Many negative stereotypes regarding donor conceived situations were utilized in this book to portray: a selfish, busy, and never present single mother; a magical, perfect, donor father who can do no wrong; and lies rampant. While some of these things may occur in the wild, it's dangerous to perpetuate these stereotypes.

That being said, REPRESENTATION IS IMPORTANT. It's great to see books surrounding all family types being published! Donor conceived families, adoptive families, and more are just as full of love and importance as the "typical" nuclear family we see so much.

[Brianna · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and Labyrinth Road for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I struggled to really get into this. The portrayal of Harper's obvious Instagram/phone obsession was obnoxious for most of the book. Also, this story reiterated for me that I do not enjoy reading about books that feature COVID. Masking/vaccines/"the virus" were mentioned frequently...but then the characters weren't actually wearing masks around each other, so it was confusing and just felt unnecessary to mention. I found the inserted storyline about life on the 1800s ship distracting too, considering this didn't tie in to the rest of the story until 3/4 of the way through.

Thankfully, Harper does some self-discovering at the end of the novel and ends up growing along the way, discovering what her true interests are outside of social media.

[Giselle · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn't get very far into this (30%). I did not connect to the characters and there was WAY too much rumination and introspection by the main character. It was so slow and took FOREVER to progress the plot. To be fair, it was an audio book, so if I could skim those parts in a physical book I might have made it further through.

Could be a good choice for someone who suffers from anxiety and a social media addiction.

[Lynda · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was very frustrated by Harper's expectations of meeting her father. Perhaps I don't know what it would be like to be raised by a single mother and not know a father, but the story seemed so focused on that one issue that it seemed a little unbelievable. I liked the minor story of the historical characters though and that helped keep my interest - especially the way they came together.

[Ariel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Surprisingly great teen novel about a girl who discovers her sperm donor father has 42 other offspring. Her quest to find out more about her origins takes her to adventures in Hawaii, away from her well meaning helicopter mom and her all-consuming love affair with her smartphone

[Izzys_Internet_Bookshelf · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5/5

I was really excited to read this book but in the end it was a long drawn out summer of ship wrecks and family drama. Which I usually like but in this case it was just 'meh'

[Melliott]

Something on the first few pages put me off, and I can't get past them. Sorry, Deb. Love your other books.

[Cierra]

Don't waste your time