This was another rich and meaningful novel by one of my favorite authors! There is a lot to think about here about how we perceive our own and each other’s bodies and physical form, scarred or not. There’s also a lot here about family and what it really means to be part of a family, whether biological or non-biological. There are excellent discussion questions at the end as well so this would make a very good book club read.

Thanks to the author and publisher, as well as NetGalley, for an advanced reading copy of this novel in exchange from my honest review.

This is a sad yet beautiful story about self-acceptance and love. Catherine Ryan Hyde always gives her characters a voice that makes them believable and likable.

When Michael was only 7-years-old, he had a horrific accident that nearly took his life. It left him with both physical and emotional scarring that lasted a lifetime. It wasn’t until college, during a filmmaking class, that he met a teacher who would change his life. This teacher became his mentor and his confidant. Michael took great pains to overcome the power those physical scars held over him. And only then could he accept the emotional scars also.

This book is mesmerizing and illuminating. I cried, I laughed and I cheered. I will never forget the lessons I read about in this amazing book. Thank you, NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for the eARC.

What a fabulous, fabulous book. It's been a long time since I teared up while reading, but this book made me do just that. Catherine Ryan Hyde is right on the money with this one - imperfectly perfect characters, people I wanted to sit down and talk with myself, and a plot that was beautifully woven together. Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the ARC.

I received a complimentary copy of this book "Michael Without Apology" and all opinions expressed are my own. I love the whole thing! I would love to listen to the audio book. Maybe also get a print copy. That is how amazing this book was to me. It just really touched my heart. Although the year just started this is probably going to be my favorite of 2025. So many messages throughout the book.

Another wonderfully written book by this author.. You’re never disappointed in one of her books. Most people have awful body image, and this book is very supportive in this instance.

This should be a 6 star rating! Catherine Ryan Hyde never disappoints. Michael Without Apology provides a look into the ideas people have about how their bodies look. The participants in Michael's film class documentary each have different reasons for their shame, and all were very real. Ms. Hyde's creative mind gives the reader a thought provoking story where a lesson is learned and the reader is thirsting for more.

I was provided an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

One of the best books in my life. This was mind-blowing! I need to read more from this author. Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for a chance to read this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for access to this title. All opinions expressed are my own

I know this book isn't out until May but I snuck a peek and kept reading. A young college student named Michael, traumatized by a childhood experience that has left him with scars-both mental and physical, has an idea for his freshmen film project. Michael will find others who also carry scars that have affected their lives and create a short documentary. What Michael could never expect is what he will learn about life, love, and forgiveness.


This had all that, Catherine Ryan Hyde magic that makes me return to her books again and again. The characters are well-written and I love to champion the ones that stood out- Michael, his adoptive parents, Madeline, Caroline, Professor Dunning etc. The chapters flowed smoothly and I never felt that the plot stalled or got weighted down with filler details. I appreciated the book club questions at the back of the book.


However, one general request I have is that I wish the author would write us an author's note which explores her reasons why it was these specific character voices that called out to her. I do realize that Catherine Ryan Hyde releases at least 2 books in a year but gosh I would love to hear a little more about her processes.

Also, could her publisher please update her biography at the back of her books? In 2025, do I care that she once shared a" dais with former president Bill Clinton'? "

Not particularly.

Maybe she had lunch with Angela Merkel? Or attended a fashion show with Gisele Bundchen? Or that she caught the papers that flew off the podium when Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his resignation? Humour aside, it might be time to bring us updates on a great author. Just my two cents!!

All in all, Michael Without Apology is going to be the perfect Mother's Day gift. Just remember to also get the woman in your life that you're celebrating some tissues. She will need it!




#MichaelWithoutApology #NetGalley
Expected Publication 06/05/25
Goodreads Review 12 /01/25

Michael Without Apology is about body image. Michael was severely scarred as a child. He is in film school and meets a professor whose story inspires him to create a documentary about body image for the class project. In seeking out people to contribute to his film he learns that people of all ages experience issues.

This would be a great addition to high school libraries.

Thank you @netgalley for the ARC.

I think what I like the most about Catherine Ryan Hyde books are the way that her characters process emotions and make meaning out of literally everything. I think that this style may drive some people nuts but it really, really works for me. I enjoy her novels and this was no exception. There were parts of this one that made me tear up.

Thank you to NetGalley and LakeUnion for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have read so many Catherine Ryan Hyde books. This is probably one of her best. She has returned to her greatest form.
It was just so powerful and so provocative that you had to stop and reread a quote or sentence and just think about it. The novel starts with a simple premise of how a boy injured in childhood felt about his body. He thinks he’s the only one who is ashamed of how he looks and how he has hidden himself or not done certain things because of it . Now a freshman in college, he enrolls in a film class and sees that the professor is very badly burned. Each student must produce a film by semesters end. We follow the journey of Michael, the main character, through the making of the film and way beyond. I feel this is one book you will never forget. It shouldn’t be missed.

What a read. It cuts to the soul and challenges the reader to introspect. The lesson to stop apologising for things not in ones control resonared deeply with me. There are truly so many life lessons in the story that this book is timeless. Catherine Ryan Hyde you deserve all your success as no book disappoints.

“Michael Without Apology” is by Catherine Ryan Hyde. I’ll admit, while Ms. Hyde’s books aren’t an auto-read for me, I do look forward to her new book. The one thing I wished this book had (and maybe the final version will) was how/why Ms. Hyde was inspired to write this book. Anyway, when Michael is eight years old, he is badly burned by a firework. He was in the hospital for many weeks and removed from his parents. Michael’s foster family decided to adopt him. While Michael loves his adopted parents, he always felt that something was wrong with him for his birth parents to not want him to return to them. When Michael is in college, he takes a film course and meets Robert Dunning, his teacher who is also badly burned. Mr. Dunning becomes Michael’s mentor - and it’s a wonderful refreshing relationship. Michael makes a student documentary film about body issues - Michael tells his own story but there are also the stories of others, including a former US gymnast who competed in the 1936 Olympics. Michael learns more about himself - and relationships. There were so many good things in this book - the former Olympian’s story about his wife was so touching (and, yes, with one of my now passed loved ones, a five minute conversation would be wonderful). Michael’s story is told in both the past and from the ages of 19-25. While the book focuses on Michael, the story touches upon his relationship with his birth family, his adoptive family, and even Michael becoming more comfortable with himself. This was a fast read for me - and a storyline that kept me turning the pages as it was rather engrossing. Was this an easy book to read - no, some rough topics are mentioned in this book. But I’d recommend this book strongly to people who want to be seen as they are no matter what their outside looks like.

I'll read anything that Catherine Ryan Hyde writes, and she never fails to surprise me. She has such a way of making her readers experience the emotions of her characters.

This book begins with a small family at the beach: father, mother, two sons. It's cold in the ocean, and the breezes are cold too. Their parents kept going back to their car, leaving the two boys unsupervised on the crowded beach. Then the older boy coerces his younger brother into stealing some professional grade fireworks from a cordoned off area. This was the final precipitating factor that changed the lives of every family member.

Michael is the younger son, the one who was most seriously injured and scarred by the fireworks. We meet him as an adult when he goes to college. He signs up for a film workshop class, and it changes his life.

When he first saw the professor, he was shocked. Robert Dunning, the professor, also had a significant amount of scarring, including on his face and hands. Unlike Michael, he could not hide his scars. He taught Michael by example to accept his scars and to not be ashamed. Michael's whole life changes from meeting this one man. It was amazing to see the man he became.

I received an e-arc of this book from Lake Union Publishing and voluntarily read and reviewed it. These are my own opinions.

I am a huge Catherine Ryan Hyde fan. Her storylines and characters are always so very real and interesting. This book is no exception. Michael is the main character. He is just starting college and really wants to be an actor but has decided to take classes to learn how to make and edit films as a kind of fallback. About his third class of his first day was to be a film workshop class. He was excited about it and was going to get there early to be sure to get a good seat. From there, Micheal’s life changed. This is a very thought provoking story. It is a very good book. Mrs Hyde has another winner. Thank you to NetGalley and LakeUnion for allowing me to read an advance copy for my honest review.

Every six months or so I check Net Galley to see if Catherine Ryan Hyde has released another book. Why? Because she is such a prolific and wonderful writer that sometimes I just need one of her books to brighten up my life. And most of the time, she succeeds, which is why she is one of my favorites. Why again? For two reasons.

First in every one of her novels, she introduces a character who is genuinely good. Sometimes it's a curmudgeon with a heart of gold and sometimes it is even a young child with an innate sense of what is the right thing to do. Second is the fact that in each and every one of her books I learn something I never knew before. Sometimes it's medical, sometimes equine, occasionally it is artistic. In one novel it was free climbing. In every one. I am left with a lesson, a thoughtful philosophy, a determination to be a better person. But this is supposed to be my review of Michael without apologies.

Michael is 19 and living with his adopted family. He was severely burned in a fireworks explosion at age 7 and given up by his birth parents. In college, he decides to produce a short documentary about body image and the covering up of scars. He meets s and falls in love with one of his subjects. It's also about a beautiful relationship between a Film Studies teacher and a young student. It's about not being ashamed or embarrassed by physical scars, It's about love and grief and the making of short documentary films.

This book will make you want to go back and read all 50 of Catherine Ryan Hyde's previous novels. Each one will leave you reflecting on it for a long time. Don't be surprised if you can recall it forever.

Thanks to Net Galkley and Lake Union for another wonderful early copy from Hyde.

This is the best book Catherine Ryan Hyde has ever written. Knowing the depth and breadth of her body of work, that might seem like a broad statement, but having read most of her books, it's either a matter of personal opinion, or if you read this book, you might just consider it to be fact.

We all have flaws, whether those others can see, or those we carry internally. Be it illness, injury or occurrences at birth, we carry marks, scars and often, shame. With shame often comes the need to apologize for not measuring up, one way or another. Hyde takes us through the need to stop feeling shame and to stop apologizing for things over which we have no control, and she does it with care in this story. The realizations I took away from this book kept me nodding in agreement and understanding, as I read page after page.

Michael was injured as a child, and to shorten down this part of the story, for the rest of his life, he thought his parents didn't want an imperfect child, and that's why he was given up for adoption. Fortunately, his new parents were good and loving people who were able to care for Michael and love him, make sure he was educated and accept him.

With the help of a film professor in college, Michael makes a life-changing decision to tell the stories of others who have a myriad of things about themselves they feel have kept them from being the whole person they would like to be.

Despite some of the harshness the reader meets from Michael's biological parents, most of the rest of this book is pure love. Michael learns that he is a person who deserves acceptance and he learns to give it to others. He learns we are all imperfect in one way or another.

I couldn't put this magnificent book down.

Appreciation to NetGalley for providing this ARC.

This is a story about the struggle for self acceptance, friendship, love and ultimately about the redemptivepower of stories.. I really enjoyed it and would recommend.

I would actually give this book a 4 1/2 stars-
What a fabulous story about a young boy who lived through a terrible accident and in college had a great professor who had horrible burns on his body that told his new students to take a good look ask questions about him and basically get it out of your system so we can get down to business and learn about film making.
Michael has a direct connection with his professor Dunning and actually shows him his own chest and body scars and the bond between the two is formed.
Professor Dunning has each student direct a film that reflects something about you and your life.
Michael decides to film his on your body with No Apologies and asks for volunteers who aren’t happy with their body. His volunteers take Michael in a totally different direction than what he was thinking about doing but his work was a life changing experience.
I highly recommend this book and thank you to NetGalley for receiving ARC.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. All opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Every book I read by Catherine Ryan Hyde quickly becomes my favorite, and Michael Without Apology, is no exception. I loved how we learned Michael’s thoughts as they developed and changed. I appreciated how he often slowed down and thought about what was being said to him, and what he said in response, and how it was all shown in the dialogue between the characters in the novel. I felt like Michael was a friend of mine, and I wanted him to not only do well, but accept himself in the process.