Title: What I Leave Behind
Author: Alison McGhee
Publisher: Simon and Schuster Children’s
Publication Date: May 15, 2018
This book was sent to me through NetGalley from Simon and Schuster in return for an honest review. At first, the format of the book threw me off, but by the end, I was impressed that the author was able to stick to these short bursts of story–and how well they worked together.
Will spends most of his days at his job at Dollar Only with Major Tom, stocking the isles with all sorts of new goodies. At night, he desperately tries to replicate his dad’s cornbread recipe, working through his grief after his father’s suicide. When he finds out that Playa was raped at a party where he was at, he begins looking for ways for to help her through her trauma as well. Through small acts of kindness to those around him, Will begins to learn how to cope with his own grief.
Told in series of one hundred words, Will’s story is presented in a unique way that keeps you reading throughout the entire book. The writing itself almost feels like a graphic novel, without the images supporting the text. However, it didn’t feel like the book was missing anything–in fact, the format felt refreshing to me.
The only critique I have of the text is that I could have used a bit more context at the beginning. Though the format makes it difficult to portray any background information, adding a section or two would help the reader to be better oriented right at the beginning of Will’s story.
Despite the disorientation, I enjoyed Will’s story, especially his desire to reach out to those that seem lost like him. Will’s story shows the affects of little acts of kindness–and how much they mean to those that are hurting.
4/5 stars