4.5 stars--The Atlas of Us is the most accurate portrayal of grief over losing a parent to cancer I've ever read. (I say this having experienced the exact situation as Atlas, so Kristin Dwyer way to make me emotional by just reading the blurb and feeling seen!!!)

Atlas is unwillingly strong-armed into going to a camp that rehabilitates trails for state parks. This was such an interesting premise, with Atlas and the other four characters being isolated in the woods while working towards cleaning up the trails. Atlas (Maps), King, Books, Sugar, and Junior make an unlikely trail crew, but the found family vibes grow and grow over time through a lot of awkward moments, mistakes, and bonding.

I loved how this book had Atlas trying to work through her grief while trying to make connections with the others. I think the inner monologue was so well done, with seemingly random or unrelated things prompting her to think of her Dad (both happy and sad memories). I felt seen because that's exactly what happens to me still and is why grief is often so nebulous a thing. The semi-reveal I saw coming but I think the point was that Atlas should have seen the signs. She didn't though, because she was trying to figure out how to help her crew and make it through to the end. This is a YA book that showed us how the character was handling being back in the real world once again after beginning to work through her grief. I think it's just as important to note that she is still hurting and sad about his death at the end, but she's processing her grief and it takes time! Grief's a tricky thing.

Overall, I think this book was really well-written. It made me tear up quite a few times because Atlas was going through it and.... I've been there. The depiction of grief and healing was well thought out and was given the proper time to air out in the narrative!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the digital advanced readers copy. This did not affect my reviews in any way.

My review only consists of me sobbing, screaming, crying and burrying myself under my pillows for the foreseeable future.
Kristin Dwyer will be the end of me and I am not even mad about it. She is extremely talented in writing emotionally charged, beautiful friendships and heartbreaking romances, grief and new beginnings.

The Atlas of Us is magical, raw, devastatingly honest and at the same time hopeful, inspirational and cozy.
I loved it SO much!

Thank you so much Harper360YA, Netgalley for the earc. My opinion is my own.

The Atlas of Us is an excellent, realistic portrayal of grief and a compelling read. The characters are flawed and three-dimensional, and the slow-burn romance will resonate with teens.

A thought provoking novel about a young lady trying to navigate her way through grief after loosing her father to cancer. This book will make you stop and think about how we all navigate our own "hikes" and journeys through the universal human emotion of grief. You might want to have some tissues handy as you make your way through this one.

I thank the author, publisher and Net Galley for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I would like to thank harper360ya and Netgalley for allowing me to read an e-arc of this book for an honest review.

I, actually, enjoyed reading this book. I love how Kristin writes about grief in this. I know we've all been through it at some point in our lives and this is a beautifully written story on what the whole process is like. We get to see Atlas throughout the journey and we see her from rock bottom at the beginning to her healed version at the end. I found myself hooked and always wanting to read more. Each character was interesting in their own way and i liked to see Kristins' own interests shine in this book. I love it when a story is gripping and i can, confidently, say that this book did what it needed to.

I was so excited to read this book, but unfortunately it didn't ever catch my attention. It took me awhile to read just waiting for it to pick up, but it never picked up for me.

All the swoon. I love Kristin Dwyer and devour her books. Atlas was impossible to put down. Such a powerful story and beautifully told. Kristin is queen.

This was a unique plot! The Atlas of Us is about a group of young people who go out on a trail to clean/restore it, and while they're there, they get to know each other and work through their personal problems. It's a good look into grief and adolescent life, especially when it doesn't go as planned. For the most part, I liked the characters, but overall, I found the book kind of meh. But objectively, I think it is a good book.

5 Stars

I didn’t realize this was a book about grief and moving on after loosing someone to cancer. Cancer is something I’m easily triggered by, what with me almost dying from it a year after my dad DID die from it. But this book…. I felt so so seen and understood, especially in all the messy bits. So Kristen, I’m sorry you also have to know this unique experience so intimately, because that must be the only way someone can write this so well while also putting a love story in it.

This quote really summed up the underlying feelings of the story, as well as my own personal experience as both a daughter losing someone to cancer AND as a survivor myself:

“That’s how cancer is. It’s long days of torture and then suddenly they’re gone. And you’re left wondering if you’re a bad person because you feel relief at it finally being over. Left wondering if you wasted moments that could have been spent with that person. Wondering how the world keeps going on without them in it.”

I don’t want this review to only focus on that aspect of the story because it also captured so many of my favorite tropes: finding yourself (and love) in the outdoors, found family, emotionally complicated and messy leads, camping, and will they won’t they tension.

The Atlas of Us is a beautiful story of loss and love and just how grief can truly eff us all up. I loved it and I hope everyone picks it up and gives it a shot!

This was heartbreaking story of grief, depression, loss, failing, and so much more.

Alas loses her father and so many other things all around the same time and falls into depression. This story is about her finding herself and her will with help on her journey.

This is definitely a book that will make you feel all the things!

I didn't know what to expect of this one...when I read the blurb I thought it might be one of those easy chick lit romance books that I could read for light relief. I was wrong. But I loved being wrong this time. This book has depth. The characters are so well developed despite them only showing parts of themselves (you'll understand when you read). The Atlas of Us certainly has romance but it is so much more than that. It's a book that shows grief at its most raw and real from the eyes of a young person. It's a book that shows that although we want to be alone in our grief and anger at the world that took away someone we cherish, friendship heals and letting people see you for who you are is a risk worth taking if they are your people. Atlas, who renames herself as Maps on a hiking programme designed to help youths, has lost her dad and in doing so had lost herself. In spending a month in nature and grafting, she develops real friendships with the most unlikely of people. At first, scared to be herself, she hides who she is but slowly their bond strengthens and she learns that letting people in is not weakness.
The story is just beautiful. It's written so perfectly. And although it's classed as YA, I took so much from this book and this author. Thank you netgalley and harper360ya

WILL READ KRISTIN'S GROCERY LISTS. I loved her first book, and can report that I loved this one too. Give me more angsty, emotional teens! That's all I ever want!

content warnings: death of parent (cancer, prior to story), grief, underage drinking

this book follows a teenager attempting to find some direction in life following the death of her father. she’s working on rehabbing trails in the western sierras, something her father was passionate about. as she lets her trail mates in, she starts to think that they might know her more than anyone else.

books about grief immediately draw me in, so although this author was new to me, i figured there was a pretty good chance that i’d really enjoy this book. personally, i thought this was a great depiction of grief. so many different emotions are explored in atlas and they can mostly be tied back to her grief. she’s not 100% sad or 100% angry or 100% numb, instead there’s a blend of all these and more.

i recommend this book and i’m looking forward to reading more from this author.

I was sent this book from Harper360 YA in exchange for an honest review.

Atlas has been sent on a community service programme as a last chance to correct her recent behaviour outbursts, due to the recent passing of her Father from cancer.
This community service programme is a hiking trail where Atlas must step away from her everyday life and be known only by a nickname 'Maps'. In her hiking group she is teamep up with a group of people who need to learn to work together and look inside themselves.
A part of this group is King, who Maps (Atlas) finds herself gravitating to. But circumstances are not as easy as Map's hopes for and even though she tries to portray a normal girl, it doesn't stop her from connecting with the memory of her deceased Father on this journey.

In the beginning, I struggled to connect with this book as I am not really a big lover of hiking. And since I went into this book completely blind, I assumed that the hiking journey was going to be the main focal point. But there was a lot more to this book then hiking.
I found this book to be such a roller coaster of raw emotion. I could really feel Map's grief, and the really felt connected with her emotional journey. There was just so much poured into this book that it really resonated with me. The slow burning bonds between the characters was written so well and the chemistry was so encapturing.
This book has my heart!

I lost my mother recently and this book really resonated with me.
I absolutely loved it be prepared to shed a tear or two

This book focuses on grief and an 18 year old navigating the death of her father. The characters on her hiking trip were unique and balanced some of the sadness in the book. The romance piece was enjoyable for a YA book. The MMC needed to confess something and the FMC continued to interrupt several times so this miscommunication piece added unnecessary conflict.

wow. a fantastic exploration of grief, sorrow and the ways in which people shape themselves. thanks for the arc! cheers

A heart wrenching book about grief, loss and depression that is impossible to put down. Be prepared to shed a tear - this one really packs a punch.

This was heart wrenching, emotional book about grief, depression and the journey of self re-discovery. I wasn't expecting to cry reading this but I did. I loved this.

This book had some really amazing lines and thoughts about grief and life etc that really spoke to me. I liked the journey Atlas went on. I liked the other characters. I liked the setting. I think I might have been expecting something similar to one of my all time favourite books with a similar setting, but that's the only similar thing between the two. So it was definitely an unfair expectation/hope of mine.
There were a few things I didn't love about this book, but I don't really need to go on about them because it was always when teenagers were acting like teenagers. In a YA fiction book. Yeah. they are going to do that. So it's really not fair of me to be like I didn't like this YA book because of the YA aspects. But there you go. I did like this author's writing, it was my first of hers. She has a cool first name too.