Dear Evan Hansen: The Novel

Personally I'm not a bookworm so It's extremely rare I'll actually pick up a book. Dear Evan Hansen was an absolutely fantastic read and I definitely felt a rollercoaster of emotions reading it. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who's ever experienced high school or secondary school education. You'll be able to relate to this book in some way or form.

First off: reader caution. This deals heavily with suicide (by a young boy) and the effect in his family and school mates. It also has themes of mental health the difficulties young people experience. So this novel is based on a musical, and from the reviews I’ve seen so far this is very different from the musical. I’m haven’t seen the musical. I started out feeling pretty shocked by what Evan did by not speaking out to Connor’s family that it was in fact Evan who’d written the letter and he and Connor hardly knew each other. But as his interactions with Connor’s family grow, you can see that he’s suffering too. He’s feeling lonely and isolated too. He’s feeling the pressures of school, family, his hormones and just life too. And it’s through the rather questionable acts that Evan does that brings Connor more a little alive to his family, which is what they need after you see just how estranged and hurt their family unit was. It’s not an easy read. Through the book, with Evan and Connor’s narrative, you learn just how lonely and troubled they both were/are, and how, in different circumstances they might actually have been friends. This also shows the impact of suicide on a community and hopefully will show that it’s ok to speak out if you’re struggling, and more important, you’re not alone.

I'm so glad I got this book. I hesitated, as I love the show and got to see it in NYC, but it's a wonderful addition to the musical. It also stands on its own as a good story. There's a lot more backstory about Connor especially that adds to the experience and explains his motives. I know the play was based on a real story (with changes). I really enjoyed here how the lyrics for songs were brought in seamlessly (though I think I was singing them in my head). It's a really inspirational story. Since seeing the play, I've wished that it was more available, and this is a great way to spread it. Though I'm going to see the national tour when it comes to Boston. Have you ever felt like nobody was there? Have you ever felt forgotten in the middle of nowhere? Have you ever felt like you could disappear? Like you could fall, and no one would hear? Well, let that lonely feeling wash away Maybe there's a reason to believe you'll be okay 'Cause when you don't feel strong enough to stand You can reach, reach out your hand And oh, someone will coming running And I know, they'll take you home Even when the dark comes crashing through When you need a friend to carry you And when you're broken on the ground You will be found So let the sun come streaming in 'Cause you'll reach up and you'll rise again Lift your head and look around You will be found

My daughter, in the 7th grade, recommended this book to me. It is such a beautiful book, and it lead to some great talks with my daughter. I feel that any adolescent would enjoy and benefit from this book (and any parent for that matter.) The author makes you genuinely care about the characters. When you know you're going to miss the characters when you reach the end of the book, the author has done an incredible job.

I don't know what I can say about this - I am in absolute love with the novel. I have not seen the play, and only listened to the soundtrack after reading the book (I didn't want any spoilers). For those saying that they could not get hooked and had to actually close the book - I'm really not sure if you're reading it properly. The book goes into such great depths to personalize each of the characters that you feel like you're transported into the book and you're a classmate with Evan, or at times, actually him. Feeling what he's feeling, going with the emotions (the good, the bad, and the ugly). The book takes you on a journey that revolves around a lie (yes, a big one), and continues to build up until it reaches its breaking point. I had been waiting for what I dubbed "the drop" from when the lie was first spewed. And I kept reading with interest with where the story was going to go next...was it going to be found? Towards the end of the novel, that's where I let loose of all my emotions while reading...I released all of my emotions the same time Evan did. I wiped away tears from my eyes as I tried to read the last few chapters and as it all came to an end. What I will say is to make sure you read the "Epilogue" as well. There are a lot of loose ends that are tied that there helps put each of the character's - Evan, Jared, Zoe, the Murphys, etc. - stories to a complete close. If I could rate this more than five stars, I would. I would, without a shadow of a doubt, definitely recommend this to anyone that has been struggling or has struggled with mental health, feeling connected with anyone, or that just wants to read an amazing story for the fall (or any time of year). Don't trust in the negative reviews.