Almost every story that I have read addresses some aspect of loss and longing. Whether it is during the times of wars or due to illness or an accident, there are multitudes of books out there that talk about what it is like to lose someone. Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano is a book about being left behind and picking up the pieces after. This is the story of a child processing who he is and figuring out who he will be. Take a look at the synopsis below and then read on for my thoughts.
One summer morning, twelve-year-old Edward Adler, his beloved older brother, his parents, and 183 other passengers board a flight in Newark headed for Los Angeles. Among them is a Wall Street wunderkind, a young woman coming to terms with an unexpected pregnancy, an injured vet returning from Afghanistan, a septuagenarian business tycoon, and a free-spirited woman running away from her controlling husband. And then, tragically, the plane crashes. Edward is the sole survivor.
Edward’s story captures the attention of the nation, but he struggles to find a place for himself in a world without his family. He continues to feel that a piece of him has been left in the sky, forever tied to the plane and all of his fellow passengers. But then he makes an unexpected discovery–one that will lead him to the answers of some of life’s most profound questions: When you’ve lost everything, how do you find yourself? How do you discover your purpose? What does it mean not just to survive, but to truly live?
Content Notes: Death of family in a plane crash, depictions of loss and missing loved ones.
Thoughts on Dear Edward
Dear Edward is told in two timelines: what happened on the plane, during the flight, and then later, when Edward wakes up and goes to live with his aunt and uncle. The in-flight side of the narrative introduced a number of people and why they were on the plane to Los Angeles. A number of them were going to the city to start a new life, leaving their past behind, similar to how Edward and his family were moving. The significance of all these characters was not clear until the second half of the book when the letters start arriving for Edward (I’m sure you guessed from the little that letters were involved) and I advise you to be patient with this book if you choose to pick it up. I personally enjoyed Edward’s after-the-crash timeline more engaging to read.
On Loss
How does one come to deal with the fact that his family isn’t there anymore? Siblings that are close in age often hold a dear place in our hearts and this is clear with how much Edward misses his brother, Jordan, and how much Jordan’s belongings and what he would have done help him come to terms with his new reality. The in-flight side of the narrative truly showcases who Edward used to be. He was the youngest in the family. Both him and Jordan were homeschooled and as Jordan was growing older (fifteen at time of the crash, Edward being twelve), their relationship was evolving with time.
On Aftereffects
Major accidents have repercussions that no one can imagine. Lacey (Edward’s aunt) and John’s marriage is falling apart when the plane crashes and through Dear Edward, we get a glimpse of what it takes to restructure the family. Edward is the child that Lacey and John never had and they care for him deeply. As they work through their own problems, they are there for Edward and provide him every support possible. Edward may be quiet but he sees what is going on in the house but it is too much to deal with his inner turmoil.
As cliche as this sounds, good things do happen after the bad ones. Edward and his friendship with Shay is a paramount to his recovery. She is Lacey’s neighbour and about the same age as Edward. They connect over Harry Potter and Shay is the one that Edward leans on as time goes on. She is his partner in crime, his confidant and someone he finds comfort with. What he misses with Jordan, he gains in a new way with Shay. I loved their relationship and am glad that Edward had the support system he did to help him, including his school principal, his aunt and uncle, Shay’s mom and his therapist.
On Wishes
Personally, one of the most infuriating parts of this book was the letters that people wrote to Edward. They shared their loved ones’ hopes and dreams and wanted Edward to achieve all the things that the people who had passed away could not. I looked at this from two lenses:
- From the point of the view of the person who lost someone on the plane – wanting to share about their loved ones is natural, especially if the person who survived may as well be the last one to have seen them.
- But at the same time, why would you put the hopes and dreams of strangers on a twelve year old? Why should Edward be the one to go live in India, China or travel Europe – why not do it yourself and feel closer to the person lost?
How is it fair to put this on a twelve year old? He survived and has a lot of mental and physical trauma to deal with. I wish that more of the letters had been kinder to Edward and acknowledged his own pains and realized that he is too young to have stranger’s hopes pinned on him. Maybe loss makes us irrational and all we really want is an outlet to share our sorrows. Maybe that’s all the letters really were.
Edward did a good job of taking these letters in the best of spirits, but as a reader, and as I write this, I still feel torn about this situation. They probably gave him some purpose and let him meet people who felt like he did – missing pieces of himself. The reality of the situation hit hard with this book and that’s the beauty of it all – it hurts.
Some Quotes
They want to share something extraordinary about themselves, because you’ve experienced something extraordinary.
Dear Edward, Pg 117
Nobody chose you for anything. Which means, truly, that you can do anything.
Dear Edward, Pg 293
Overall, Dear Edward was an emotionally charged book. I feel like it could have been a little more focused but it did a good job of showing the process of recovery and what it means to live with oneself, in spite of all the expectations that random people have of us. It reminds me of Miracle Creek in some ways.
** Dear Edward is now available in stores. I got my copy from the library so please check your local library too and support them. **
Amazon Print
Amazon Kindle
Cover image: Photo by Carol Jeng on Unsplash
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