In “The Girls at 17 Swann Street” we meet 26 year old Anna, a previous ballet dancer who is suffering from an eating disorder that has taken over her life. Not only is her health suffering, but so is her three year marriage to her soulmate, Matthias.

“I tell people that I am a dancer. I have not danced in years, though. I work as a cashier in a supermarket, but my real occupation is anorexia.” Anna often refers to herself as “ [A girl] with an old woman’s face and a child’s body.” She feels like she is in her sixties, rather than a vibrant young woman. She consumes apples and some popcorn on a GOOD day. She is 88 pounds and in danger of dying.

If you like character driven novels that make you feel deep down into the very bottom of your gut, then this is DEFINITELY the book for you. It seemed like I was the one being forced to eat a giant bowl of pasta covered in sauce and cheese after I had just suffered from a stomach bug. I found myself cringing trying to picture the gobs and gobs of cream cheese piled high on that carb-filled bagel and was shaking my head thinking that no way I could do it—and I’m healthy! To me...Anna, Julia, Emm, Valerie, and even “no-name” Direct Care were not just works of fiction, they were my roommates. I was in this for the long haul with them. Yara Zgheib’s words hurt; they caused real tears. This is not something that an author has been able to accomplish in quite some time for me, I’m a pretty hard egg to crack, but I was absolutely broken in so many parts of this book.

I have had a love/hate relationship with food since I was little. I am an emotional eater, a probable undiagnosed obsessive compulsive over-eater in fact. I can find common ground in reading about those suffering from eating disorders; I can relate to the grief that they feel. While I do not purge after bingeing, I have had the urge to do so in earlier years. I am on the opposite spectrum of Anna, thus I can’t even fathom how anyone can purposely starve themselves...but this disease is oh-so-real. SO real, in fact, that death feels like an escape.

I can understand Annas theory where if you forget what something tastes like, it becomes hard to miss it. I’ve DONE all the “diets”, tried all of the fads. But....dear GOD if you cheat and taste that little piece of heaven that you’ve been depriving yourself of again, it’s near impossible to stop. As Julia said, “ Pizza, ice cream, milkshakes, fries—they’re reliable friends.”

I remember writing many research papers for both high school and college regarding both bulimia and anorexia, I’ve read quite the collection of nervosa books including one of my favorites by Portia de Rossi, “ Unbearable Lightness”, and I was captivated with the movie “Black Swan,” starring Natalie Portman. Throughout all of these i have never felt more connected to the actual process of intake. I did not recall that an anorexic could actually go into shock from food ( refeeding syndrome). I have never even heard of hungry brain syndrome before. These things are frightening, unbearable to imagine, let alone experience. At 17 Swann Street you GOING to experience the ugly.

What I wanted more of from this book was more information about Anna’s accident on stage, and more family background including her brothers passing. I would have also liked to delve even deeper into Anna’s previous emotionally abusive relationship with Philippe.

What I loved the most about this story is the comraderie between the girls. They refuse to let each other fail. It’s so easy to look the other way, to focus only on your own well-being, but the Swann girls—they stick together! Whether using intimidation ...“Put it on Or I will MAKE you...” or occupying their minds with horoscopes, The Olympics or favorite TV shows, they make it through each obstacle as a team. The goal is that no one gets left behind, But no one fights the same demons and one day the voices inside any one of them might be the very last straw...

Brilliantly written. Emotionally charged. Deserving of Beyond 5 stars !

Thank you to NetGalley & to St. Martins Press for allowing me to read this early e-arc. All opinions are my own. The book is available as of February 5th, and you won’t be sorry that you read it.

This book was difficult to read. The subject matter is current, and hits too close to home for me. A friend of mine lives this each and every day with members of her family. At the end of it all, there can be healing and hope.

A ballerina allows herself to be admitted to a facility for the treatment of eating disorders after collapsing. As she meets and gets to know the other girls in the facility, she gains strength from their stories and learns to reevaluate her own body image. Author Yara Zgheib’s debut novel takes readers inside the mind in heartbreaking detail of a person suffering from anorexia but misses the mark on the story level in her first book The Girls at 17 Swann Street.

Anna Proux lives what most people might think is a charmed life. A native of Paris, she meets and marries Matthias, the man she considers her soulmate. They’re happy; they adore one another. Matthias is well respected at work, and Anna is a ballerina with a dance company.

The real battle in their lives rages inside of Anna, however. She fights her crippling insecurity every day, pouring herself into her dancing so she can forget the effects of childhood tragedies and the criticisms from her first love. With those criticisms and her self-doubt dictating her every move, Anna begins to forego eating most meals. Maybe, she thinks, if she can control her food intake, she can reach an ideal weight and everything will make sense again.

Then Anna gets injured, largely due to diminished strength because she hasn’t been eating enough. The role she’d dreamed of getting and the hours of rehearsal she put toward it slip from her grasp. Her refusal to eat gets worse and transforms into anorexia, all without anyone realizing it. When Matthias get an offer to work in the States, Anna believes this could be a new start. She can leave behind all the bad and forge a new life in Missouri with her husband.

Except that the insecurity and memories follow her across the ocean. Despite repeated promises to start eating again, Anna doesn’t. In fact, her daily vigilance of her food intake increases. One night she collapses in the bathroom, and Matthias puts his foot down. Anna needs help, and he refuses to go another day until she gets it.

With the utmost of reluctance, she allows him to check her into 17 Swann Street. The facility looks like any other ordinary house, except that it’s home to several girls who all suffer from some sort of eating disorder. Anna blanches at the rules. She and the girls are expected to eat six meals a day. Privileges like walks outside and visits to town are earned, not a right. And everyone must attend counseling, both group and private. No exceptions.

During her first 24 hours, Anna becomes convinced she won’t survive at 17 Swann Street. The longer she spends time there, however, and gets to know the girls, the more she realizes that the others understand just how much she’s suffering—even if none of them share in explicit terms what drives their own disorders. She also begins to understand the depth of her disease and bit by bit gains the courage to tackle the challenges in her heart so she can regain control of her life.

Author Yara Zgheib delves deep into the character of Anna and shares in relatable prose the mindset of suffering from anorexia. While many books might spotlight a teen character, at 26 years old Anna is far past the age of a flighty young woman. This gives her anorexia more time to secure its grip on her and challenges readers to reevaluate any preconceived notions they might have. Eating disorders don’t discriminate against anyone.

Less successful is the story on the mechanical level. While Zgheib showcases with ease Anna’s emotional plight, the story itself doesn’t hold too many surprises. The book feels more like a series of diary entries rather than a novel with a trackable story arc. Zgheib’s tone almost gives away the answer to the question of whether Anna will begin a significant recovery from her anorexia. A few moments seem to teeter on the “will she/won’t she” edge, but those moments don’t come often enough.

Anna’s struggles and the revelation of the source of her eating disorder will endear her to readers, no doubt. She’s the strongest element in the book, however; readers really don’t get to know much about the other girls in the house, which is a shame because their stories seem as much if not more compelling than Anna’s own.

Readers who want to understand the daily struggles of an anorexic person will want to get this book, but otherwise I recommend they Borrow The Girls at 17 Swann Street from their public libraries.

A very important person in my life is a recovering alcoholic-addict; just like the characters of The Girls at 17 Swann Street, this person suffers from a debilitating disease. In the book, the “women of Swann Street” suffer from various eating disorders, and are residents at an inpatient treatment facility. Like so many others in the world, they have each discovered a coping mechanism that provides temporary relief, in spite of the pain it causes both them and their loved ones.

"Slow, mindful breaths. This is so painful that I almost laugh at the situation. Here I am, about to have a breakdown over a bagel and cream cheese."

There is so much that I can relate to in this book not only because of my involvement with an individual who uses unhealthy behaviors for coping, but also because of my own history with disordered eating and other unhealthy coping mechanisms. I love that author Yara Zgheib includes, as characters in the novel, members of the patient’s families and demonstrates how they are affected by the decisions of their loved ones; this is always a challenging situation.

"There is no tragedy to suffering. It is, just as happiness is. To be present for both, that is life, I think."

While there are certainly triggers here for anyone who may be actively struggling with/recovering from disordered eating, (so please be mindful!) this is an absolutely beautiful, well-written portrayal of the struggles many individuals endure and The Girls of 17 Swann Street is a book that will certainly stick with me for quite some time; highly recommend!

I do not have a good relationship with food. I'd wager that millions of other people can say the same, each in their own way. The sheer volume of those affected has done a lot to "normalize" eating disorders and food issues. It saddens me so much - beyond words, really - that this is so.



Reading this book, I found myself crying over and over again. I devoured it in a single weekend, because I couldn't stop reading. Anna's story is heartrending. Zgheib paints a vivid picture of the insidiousness that is anorexia nervosa. The anxiety, the fear, the stress, the way it takes over your life are all captured eloquently in these pages.



You wouldn't think that not doing something can overwhelm your entire life, but that's what happens. Everything else dims to a grey haze and it happens so gradually that you don't even fully comprehend what's going on. Those around you get that hair-raising itch at the backs of their necks, where they know something is wrong and they're uncomfortable but they can't precisely pinpoint what it is. Everyone involved starts to doubt their own sanity. "Is it really that bad? Are drastic steps needed? Am I over-reacting?" The fear of losing a relationship, causing harm to another's life, keeps friends and loved ones from stepping in even when they become convinced there's a real issue.



In-patient treatment facilities have to exist because of how far this disease is often able to progress. So far that medical intervention becomes necessary just to keep the afflicted person alive so they can try to heal. One of the cruelest ironies of this disease is how a person receiving medical intervention feels they are being harmed by the intervention. All their "hard work" being thrown away with so many calories consumed.



Reading these pages was difficult but I am so grateful that this book has been written. I hope every young adult reads it. I hope every person recovering from an eating disorder reads it. I hope they get the message of how much is lost when an eating disorder takes over your life. I hope they feel hope that, no matter how far they have progressed, they can come back. I hope they gain understanding of how much damage - to themselves and their loved ones - is caused by an eating disorder.



There's so much power and love and information and sorrow and pain in this book. There are not enough words of commendation for Yara Zgheib and "The Girls at 17 Swann Street," but I hope mine will be a start.

This was one of those stories where I cared about what happened to the main character without particularly liking her a lot of the time. I didn't warm up to her until well into the book, when her real nature showed through a little more. When anorexia clouded her memories, told her lies, or made her mean I felt frustrated with Anna. As I understood more and more about what was making her behave in such a way, and as she began to fight it, it became easier and easier to root for her.

I wasn't very familiar with anorexia going into this story. I thought the author did a good job describing the awful consequences of it, for everyone involved. I really liked that the story showed things from Anna's point of view, with so much self-deception and rationalizations, and also allowed me to see Anna from the professional's perspectives, the way she really was.

The way the book was formatted bothered me a little bit. When people spoke, it was italicized, not in quotations. Since the flashbacks were also italicized, sometimes I was thrown out of the story until I figured out what I was looking at. I also would like to have seen more of Anna dealing with the things in her past that helped lead to her anorexia. There was so much detail regarding daily life on Swann Street, it would have been nice to see that as well.

Overall, I thought it was a very good story. It was sad at times, but not dreary. I thought it ended in a good way. The few things that I saw as drawbacks were minor. The story was satisfying, and I will definitely be on the lookout for more of this author's work.

The Girls at 17 Swann Street, by Yara Zgheib is a heart-wrenching novel about Anna Roux who has been booked into 17 Swann Street by her desperate husband. 17 Swann Street is a residential treatment facility for patients with severe eating disorders. She is quickly diagnosed with life-threatening anorexia nervosa and her dangerous and difficult treatment commences.

Her treatment? Anna must eat, after having avoided food for years. It sound simple, but she is so weak that even the treatment may kill her.

I found this story such an emotional journey. She followed her young husband from Paris, France – where she was a professional ballet dancer – to Missouri, U.S.A. where her condition begins to deteriorate. When she’s admitted to the treatment facility she weighs just 88 pounds (40 kilograms).

From Anna’s complete denial that there was anything wrong with her – apparently a symptom of the condition – to her acceptance and then determination to try to get better, we slowly learn what brought her to this point and how precarious her hold on life really is.

I learned so much about anorexia and how difficult it is to recover from – physically as well as psychologically. The average woman requires around 2000 calories per day. At 40 kilograms, Anna is well below average weight and hasn’t eaten anywhere near 2000 calories per day in years.

On admission she is placed on a 2400 calorie per day eating plan, which is increased to 3500 calories because this is what it will take to convince her body to start actually putting on weight. It needs the energy to repair organ damage first.

I can’t begin to imagine how traumatic that would be for somebody who also has a pathological fear of food.

Her medical team monitors her closely for signs of re-feeding syndrome, which is basically when the body goes into shock from having to process actual food. It can result in death.

Through it all, Anna’s husband stands by her, visiting her daily. She’s one of the lucky ones, one of the long-time residents tells her. Though she doesn’t understand at the time, subsequent events make it clear how crucial it is to have someone in your life who loves you unconditionally and won’t give up on you.

Having been through my own mental health issues following the birth of my second son, I can attest to how incredibly important it is to have someone in your corner. Living with a mental illness is not easy. Having someone there for you who never, ever gives up on you can make all the difference.

The Girls at 17 Swann Street is a highly emotional, well-written read that’s ultimately uplifting and hopeful. I highly recommend it.

As someone who loves to eat and have been a food lover for practically my entire life, I will be honest in saying that I cannot imagine what it would be like to not be able to eat, or to have such an aversion to food that the mere thought of having to consume or even taste a little bit of it is enough to cause crippling anxiety and stress to the point of near heart attack. For the most part, I’m not a picky eater in that I don’t have much preference on what I will or won’t eat – I’m just as willing to eat the same foods over and over again as I am to try something different every day. I also don’t believe in diets (unless it’s for health reasons of course) because I don’t care all that much about how I look physically – as long as I’m healthy and happy, that’s all that matters. We have a saying in Chinese that goes something along the lines of “[being able] to eat is a blessing,” which is a philosophy of sorts that I’ve always followed.

Given the above, it’s probably not difficult to understand why I wouldn’t be able to relate personally to the main character Anna’s struggle with anorexia in Yara Zgheib’s debut novel The Girls at 17 Swann Street. Despite the lack of personal connection though, I did appreciate the story that Zgheib tried to tell and the realistic portrayal of what it is like to suffer from an eating disorder, especially one as devastating as anorexia (and bulimia). She covered pretty much all aspects – from the constant physical, mental, and emotional struggle to the toll it takes on family, friends and loved ones. I truly did feel for Anna at the various stages of her journey, though I must also admit that I was also angered at certain moments when she deliberately made certain decisions knowing how much hurt it would cause, not just to herself, but also to everyone around her. With that said though, I couldn’t help continuing to root for her, support her, and maintain hope in whatever progress she is able to make, regardless of how big or small.

While the story was good and the characters were written in a way that made us want to root for them every step of the way, the one complaint I had with this book was the structure of the narrative (basically the presentation of the story). Though majority of the story was told in the present time, during Anna’s stay at the treatment center, there were also snippets about Anna’s past as well as the moments leading up to her admittance into the Swann Street center that were interspersed throughout, which wasn’t a problem in and of itself, except that structurally, the snippets were intertwined to the point that it became hard to tell where one moment ended and the next began. I know several reviewers mentioned the lack of proper punctuation for the dialogue, specifically the use of italicized sentences to indicate dialogue rather than the traditional quotation marks, which I definitely agree caused confusion -- especially since Anna’s own thoughts were also in italics, so sometimes it felt like the characters’ thoughts and conversations bled into each other. This made the story a bit hard to follow at times. For me though, it was a bit more of struggle because I had an ARC copy that was formatted oddly to begin with – there were basically no spaces between the paragraphs and even between chapters, so I felt like I was reading one run-on paragraph for 300+ pages. I eventually had to put my own “spacing” into it in my head as I read, which was one of the reasons why it took me so long to get through this one.

The issues with structure aside though, I would still recommend this book for the powerful story it succeeds in telling as well as the awareness it brings to the very real struggles of those with anorexia. I personally learned a lot, not just about anorexia, but also about how much I’ve been taking for granted in my own life. The thoughtfulness of the story definitely made reading this a humbling experience for me!

Received ARC from St. Martin’s Press via NetGalley

This is the story of Anna Roux, a 26 year old professional dancer from Paris, who has moved to America with her husband. We meet Anna as she moves into Bedroom 5 at 17 Swann Street, and are told: "I do not suffer from anorexia, I have anorexia. The two states are not the same. I know my anorexia, I understand it better than the world around me." She also tells us: "My anorexia keeps me company, comforts me. I can control it, so I choose it." As Anna goes through treatment at the inpatient facility located at 17 Swann Street, we experience her highs & lows along with her. We see her fight the battle against anorexia, and we see her win some battles (and then lose some others).

This book absolutely broke my heart. I wanted to cry for Anna, and I wanted to cheer for her. This book is an amazing explanation of an eating disorder, and is essential reading for anyone who is wanting to understand how this disease can wholly envelop a person. I have not suffered from an eating disorder, but I have seen someone I love battle one, and Yara Zgheib did such an amazing job bringing this to life. Thank you, Yara, for sharing this story with us!

The Girls at 17 Swann Street is a book that will stick with me. This is a haunting and heartbreaking story of a young woman’s battle with anorexia.

Anna goes to live at 17 Swann Street, a home for woman battling eating disorders. Throughout the novel, you will meet the other girls who reside there and care for them as if they are actual friends. The relationships and bonds the girls form to help each other battle their own demons is a beautiful yet heartbreaking one. I found myself silently cheering them all on.

Many thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for this ARC. Highly recommended!

*I was gifted an advanced copy of this book by the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review. *
We've all had those days when we felt ugly, or fat. Felt guilty for the extra cookie or the donut for breakfast.
But what if those thoughts ruled your life? If you were counting every last calorie, from tic tacs to grains of rice, if you were weighing out whether you could have the carbs in your rice cake. Skipping dinner and breakfast because you wanted to be able to eat a "normal" meal on your date night.
Body dysmorphia is an all too real problem, and in today's world of social media, it can be even easier to fall down a rabbit hole of "Thinstagram" or something of the like.
"The Girls At 17 Swann Street" by Yara Zgheib follows a young woman as she finally seeks treatment for anorexia at an in patient facility, and through a series of flash backs we see her decent into dysmorphia and disordered eating.
This book was deep, heart wrenching, and incredibly raw. Having spent years in the same situation, it felt like Zgheib had ripped dialogue out of my own past and put it on the page. And yet, she still allows for hope, for the belief that Anna can find a way to regain control of her own mind, something which I know can seem absolutely impossible and terrifying in the moment.
The characterization of the other girls was fantastic. Watching the relationships they built, and the coping mechanisms they would share was heart warming. Because in the darkest of times, those close to us can become a light to live by.
I'm not gonna lie, this is a heavy read. I cried several times, but I laughed too. This one definitely ran me through the gauntlet of emotion.
The Book
Just. All. The feels. Every damn one of 'em. There were times I had to put it down because I was just so overwhelmed.
🌹🌹🌹🌹


The Writing
Beautiful, real, and completely full.
🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️

Readability
As I said, sometimes there was an emotional overload and I had to take a break. I took a full week to read this one just to fully absorb it.
🕰️🕰️🕰️

Be prepared for a very emotionally charged read. I could not put the book down because it drew me in right away.

An engaging story about a disease that can effect any of us. It is also a story about discovering yourself and how you are never the only person going experiencing pain. A beautiful read.

Anna Roux was once a ballerina. She wasn’t the best dancer but she worked hard to keep her weight down and practiced arduously to stay competitive. When an injury sidelines her, her life quickly advances toward falling apart. Now she finds herself unable to dance, a job she has dreamed of since childhood. Compounding her disappointment is her recent move from her beloved Paris to St. Louis as she follows her husband’s career. Further problems arise out of her isolation when she’s left alone for most of the day while her devoted husband works hard to support them. What began with a dancer watching her weight and counting calories, became an obsession – one that now threatens her very life. Matthias is Anna’s husband and he is the very best thing in her life, but even he cannot stop her downward spiral.

The pink building at 17 Swann St. is the facility that Anna is taken to in order to save her life. Her stay involves re-learning how to eat. Anna’s days are filled with a regimented schedule of therapies, meals and snacks and if she earns it, a walk around the neighborhood. The meals and snacks present a serious problem, but if all the food is not consumed or if a meal is refused, there’s a three strikes policy. Three failures to eat will result in a feeding tube.

Zgheib knows of such circumstances firsthand. She herself suffered from anorexia and fully understands the struggle to not listen to negative thoughts about eating. Her book beautifully provides a window into the inner conflict that anorexics face. The physical effects of starving oneself are excruciatingly depicted and will captivate readers by giving them a better understanding of the illness. But the book is not solely focused on anorexia – bulimia is also exposed.

What is stellar about this book is the bond the patients share. They are cognizant of one another’s individual struggles and of the need to be supportive of each other. They silently, often with notes or gestures, let others know they understand – and do not judge. Anna is the lucky one who has a husband who tries to support her. He is the foundation for her survival. She also has a supportive father who does his best – long distance from Paris. Compared to the other patients, Anna has a lifeline, something to live for. But can even these loved ones motivate Anna to change her eating behaviors?

Another important focus of the book is the way the disease affects those around the anorexic or bulimic. Anna and the other patients have all forfeited the support from people close to them. This reflects how tragic the plight of those with eating disorders is, and signals how desperate they are that even those who love them cannot dissuade them from self-harm.

The style of the book is creative and noteworthy. The pace is swift as if one is on a raft with the current pushing the reader ever closer to a precipice. Even the process of reading the novel moves quickly because of the layout of the text. There is an interesting use of background chapters written in italics. These reflect important details and milestones in Anna’s past that have brought her to her current state. It is noteworthy that some of the characters are deliberately left unnamed – called “Direct Care” – as if they are not quite part of the human story.

This book brings the reality of eating disorders to the forefront for everyone to read and learn. It is a moving and powerful tale that will impact readers. The story of 17 Swann Street will haunt readers long after the book is finished.
4.5*

The book is about Anna who is anorexic and is in treatment facility. Anna is a professional dancer in Paris. Maintaining a certain weight is crucial. Anna leaves Paris and comes to the States with her husband, Matthias and that’s when things take a turn for the worse.

I really felt bad for Anna in this story. She left her family, her job, and everything she knew. Once in the States things don’t work out as planned and that’s when the depression sets in. This book was told in Anna’s point of view but I would have loved to get Matthias point of view as well. I loved how he never gave up on Anna. Even when Anna was doing her best to drive him away. I did like that the story was told in past and present and you could see everything build up.

I normally don’t read books like this but it was such a good story. I felt for each and every girl at Swann Street. I celebrated their milestones with them and motivated them when they had setbacks as well. I wanted them all to get better and beat their demons. I loved the direct care staff as well. It really felt like I was in the story as I read and I’m glad I took a chance with this book!

This book was truly heartbreaking, inspiring and shows the struggles of eating disorders but can be applied to any issue you are facing. A struggle of any sort is wrenching, draining and to make your way through it, or not, is itself what gives us hope to continue repairing our thoughts and love of ourself. I highly recommend this book.

This book takes you on a journey that I have never had a problem with myself but made me feel like I right there with Anna and the other girls from 17 Swann Street.
This story is a look at eating disorders and how it not only effects the person with the eating disorder but also their family and friends. I feel like it was a very honest look at eating disorders and was handled very well.
I loved the writing style. I picked this book up at 7:00 one night and finished it the next day because I was so drawn to the characters and their stories.

I received this book for free in exchange for my honest review.

#netgalley
#Thegirlsat17swannstreet

A haunting story, beautifully told. Anorexia, bulimia, any mental disorder is so cruel. They rob one of who they are meant to be, and rob your loved ones of who they know. Sometimes permanently. A mental disease disorder does not go away, it does not heal, it has to be controlled, maintained, fought.

I appreciate the author shedding light on our battles. Unless you are living it, it is just impossible to completely understand.

Highly recomnend.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher.

Thank you

I picked this book to read because I had heard about this debut author and I wanted to read something different
from what I normally read.
It is a gripping fictional reality into the world of eating disorders and the extremes of the daily struggles ones who suffer
from it.
This book is very emotional and had my senses on high alert with every word that Anna Roux explains about how her life is.
This book was written well and felt very "real" in the sense of you feeling a vary of emotions about Anna as well within yourself while reading this story.
Well done & look forward to what else this Author writes.

I choose this book because the subject matter was close to my heart. I grew up with a mother that had an ongoing eating disorder, and unfortunately a few years ago I myself fell down the same rabbit hole. If not for a health scare, and a husband who loves and supports me beyond words, I don't know where I would be right now. This book was beautiful. Painfull. Hard to read. It brought back memories and feelings I would rather not remember, but it is exactly for that reason that I loved this book SO much.

The writing was beautiful. Compassionate. Poignant. Heartbreaking. The story was touching. Devastating. Honest. The characters were complex. Intriguing. Lovable. Realistic. I honestly don't know what else to say about this book. I loved it, and it gets a huge two thumbs up from yours truly.