The Bridge from Me to You

The Bridge from Me to You is a story that will forever be in my heart and mind. It is on equal par as The Fault In Our Stars in my opinion.

The story follows a dual perspective of Lauren, a girl who is living with her aunt and uncle after a tumultuous relationship with her mother, and Colby a star football player who is trying to decide what happens after the season is over.

I truly loved how the characters helped each other really find themselves. They didn't rush into love like some teen stories do. It was all very organic and real. Growing up in a small town myself, I could relate to a lot that happened to Colby and Lauren. From dealing with the past of Lauren's life to sorting out the future of Colby's, this story felt whole, real, and genuinely gripping. I completely indulged in this book. I could not put it down.

The inclusion of birds, bridges and Benny just helped put the whole story together. The Bridge from Me to You is one of love, family and growing up in all ways.

I would recommend this to anyone who loves small towns, football, or Bugles.

When I requested this ARC, I did so without the knowledge that half of it was written in a poem prose. I probably wouldn’t have requested if I had known, but I’m glad I did. I’ve only read two other books with the same poem-like structure, and it’s never really been a favorite of mine. The Bridge from Me to You, however, managed to both capture my attention and turn the page for more.

The Bridge from Me to You is told in dual POVs, with the majority of Lauren’s chapters told in poem. Honestly, I found Lauren’s simplicity that much more impacting. I took a poetry class last semester, and there’s something to be said about the weight of just a couple of words. Most of Lauren’s chapters are short and brief, but the way it was written manages to convey so much more emotion.

Where I come from,
there were no scented candles, no fun, family games,
no savory Sunday dinner.

It was a strange, crazy place, my house.

How long ’til they notice a cate like me doesn’t belong in a nice dog park like this?

Those last three stanzas spoke to me in a way a poem has never before, and it was in moments like that that made me truly feel for these characters. Moving to a small, new town isn’t easy and rumors fly every which way. While those rumors don’t seem to affect Lauren, they do in a way affect Colby. He, more than anyone, knows what it’s like to be constantly pressured and in the spotlight. As the town’s football hero, Colby’s suffocating and it is with Lauren that he ultimately finds peace.

The Bridge from Me to You is a short, sweet read, perfect for teens going through those feelings of first love. More than that, The Bridge from Me to You is simple, yet complex, and while it may not at first have been my first pick, it was definitely worth it.

ARC provided by NetGalley:
Disclaimer: I am not a romance/love story person. Most “mushy” stories leave me running away as fast as I can. But sometimes the romance is secondary to a bigger plot, as was the case with this newest book from Lisa Schroeder.

Meet Lauren. As the new girl in town, she’s the object of much speculation. We find out very early on that she’s come to live with her aunt and uncle, but the suspense builds until we find out exactly why. She struggles with the loss of her immediate family, her place in her new family, and how she fits in to this new, small, close-knit town. Her point of view is told in prose, for the most part, which lends a poetic quality to her story.

But hers isn’t the only perspective that we hear. There’s also Colby. In this small town that’s centered around football, he’s one of the team’s rising stars. He’s going places, just not the places he wants to. His family, and the entire town for that matter, have every expectation that he’ll go on to make it big in college football. His story is told in more traditional narrative form as he tries to find the strength to stand up for what he wants, both in love and out of life in general.

This was a good, engaging book that earned a solid four out of five stars for me. The alternating writing style works completely and adds credibility to the different stories being told. It’s a love story, no doubt, so don’t go into it thinking you’ll be getting some deep, mysterious, angst-filled young adult book. My only (slight) complaint would be that it really does paint a somewhat rosy picture of high school life and small town life in general. But in today’s world of harsh headlines, sometimes that’s just what you need in a good book.

I was intrigued by this novel's format--with alternating chapters from Lauren's point of view (in verse) and Colby's point of view (in prose). I thought it was interesting how Schroeder told the story not only from two different POV's, but also in two fundamentally different ways.

I think giving Lauren's chapters in verse was a good way to capture her fractured and confused state of mind. Lauren's poetry also allowed Schroeder to slowly reveal the truth about what happened to Lauren's family and why she was sent to live with her aunt and uncle. We get hints through the thoughts Lauren expresses in her poetry, rather than being told outright from the beginning.

I enjoyed Colby's voice as well. His chapters managed to capture his sensitive and thoughtful side, even while he talked about things like football. I really liked the idea of this character being obsessed with bridges, and I thought Schroeder used this idea well metaphorically.

I appreciated how the interactions between Lauren and Colby were sweet and innocent for much of the book. The two main obstacles that kept them apart felt a bit contrived to me, but I did enjoy how they tried to be friends until they had the chance to possibly be something more. It was a refreshing change of pace from a lot of YA romances where the characters jump into heavily physical relationships pretty quickly.

However, my main critique of the book stems from the air of innocence that I liked. While I found the teens' relationship cute, the writing in the novel felt like it was aimed at a younger audience than I expected. The plot followed similarly. Schroeder set up conflicts for the characters in their relationships with their families and friends, but then it felt to me like the situations never got as dark as they probably would have in real life. Every problem the characters faced seemed to resolve themselves easily. While there is nothing wrong with this, and I certainly don't believe that every YA novel needs to be dark, because the darker situations were set up, I was expecting something more from them than what I got. I think the book would simply be better suited for a slightly younger audience.

I enjoyed this story told in alternating voices and verse/prose, so we get both the boy's and the girl's perspective of a budding friendship between two kindred spirits. Having hopes beyond what parents can see, and feeling alone, Colby and Lauren find a friend just when they need it. My favorite part was seeing how their relationship developed and grew from when they first met through many interactions after. I have a feeling my students will really like this one. While I felt some parts happened too easily, there are some heavy themes addressed within. It's a quick read. I would recommend this to those who liked One for the Murphys.

This is short easy read about finding yourself, about football, about first love, and pain. I read this in a manner of a couple hours and while it's not the best thing I've ever read I really enjoyed it. There's plenty of pulling on your heart strings moments and I really enjoyed both characters and I loved how fast paced it was. Each chapter was no more than four or five pages long(my ARC ebook copy) and that made it fast paced and easy to devour in a few short hours.

Both the main characters have their own sets of problems, they're likable and have faults, I really enjoyed reading about them both. There was a fairly nice set of side characters but I feel like non of them got enough attention. Benny was my favorite and I would have liked to see a bit more of his friendship with Colby.

Lauren's chapters are told in verse, beautiful verse and I loved every minute of them. Colby's chapters were maybe a little bit better, because I loved him, and also because you got to see a bit more in his chapters. I loved Colby's friendship with Benny and all of his family issues, I loved seeing him finally stand up to his father and I loved his fascination with bridges. Lauren was a good character but I wanted just a little more depth to her character, I get all her problems with her mom and little brother and I loved how gradually that was all revealed but at the same time I wanted to see her relationship with her aunt and uncle and cousins and even with her mom and brother just a little bit more. I also really enjoyed the romance for the most part, I liked that it was kind of in the background throughout most of the book and it was in small but important ways that they helped shape each other.

Overall this was a good short read, there was nothing that I really disliked or hated about this book, I just enjoyed it. I feel with a little more depth it could have been a bit better but overall it's a really good book.

"The Bridge From Me to You" was an enjoyable read. Lauren and Colby were both believable, likable characters to root for. And the difficulties both faced were true to life and realistic; Lisa Schroeder managed to create tension without melodrama. Unlike many titles out there, the hero and heroine face complications outside of their relationship and "should they or shouldn't they" scenarious. I would definitely recommend this to any YA looking for a true-to-life romance.

I absolutely loved this book. It warmed my heart and I related to it so well. The book is set in a small, fictional, Oregon town an hour or two away from Portland, during football season. I felt like this was going back in time for me, as I grew up in a small Oregon town a similar distance away from Portland, and vividly remember the experience of football season in a small town.

I loved the characters. They both had so much depth and were so real. In my full time job, I work with high school seniors during the application process for college, so I really related to Colby, as I see students like him frequently in my work. I loved how the chapters rotated from the two perspectives--this can be hit or miss for me but in this book's case, it worked perfectly. It worked so well because of the writing style-- you could tell which character was narrating just by the writing style of each chapter. Lauren's chapters were almost poetic and journal-like--which makes sense with what is going on in her life at the time.

This book was an entertaining, charming, quick read. It embodies everything I love about the young adult genre. I loved the overall themes and messages this book portrays--I feel not only would it be entertaining reading for young adults, but teach them some life lessons too.

I BELIEVE you'll love this book :)