Goodbye days

"Where are you guys? Text me back."

*I wanna thank Penguin Random House UK Children’s and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. This doesn't effect in any way on my opinion on book.*  

Goodbye days is a book about how sometimes simple SMS can change lives. But it's also about  Carver,boy who lived (no, he's not Harry Potter :P). He is someone who has to learn how to live without his best friends but how to live with guilt,grief and loneliness. 

"Can a text message destroy your life?

Carver Briggs never thought a simple text would cause a fatal crash, killing his three best friends, Mars, Eli, and Blake. Now Carver can’t stop blaming himself for the accident and even worse, there could be a criminal investigation into the deaths.

Then Blake’s grandmother asks Carver to remember her grandson with a ‘goodbye day’ together. Carver has his misgivings, but he starts to help the families of his lost friends grieve with their own memorial days, along with Eli’s bereaved girlfriend Jesmyn. But not everyone is willing to forgive. Carver’s own despair and guilt threatens to pull him under into panic and anxiety as he faces punishment for his terrible mistake. Can the goodbye days really help?(synopsis from goodreads.com)"

 

Goodbye days is a book which I read really quickly and that says much about it. I loved every part of it. It get you sucked in the story and it won't let you go until you finish.

I think that grief and guilt was decribed fantastic. I liked the style it was written,it was perfect. Alternating between past and present was a perfect way to show us what Mars,Eli and Blake meant to Carver and Jesmyn. Also,Sauce Crew was hilarious and I wish there was more about them.

"Language is powerless enough in the face of death."

The characters were beautifully described and I almost felt like they were real,which is something I always like to see in a book,especially in a book with this kind of theme.

""What weighs more? A pound of feathers or a pound of lead?" Everyone said lead. But a few hundred pounds of best friend and casket don't weigh the same as a few hundred pounds of lead or feathers. It weighs much more."

If somebody asked me what character I liked the most,I couldn't choose. All of them was so real and I could understand them.
Although,to be honest,Nana Betsy and Dr Mendez,who were representing a sense of
mind,were characters I liked the most. They were honest and they had their own problems and both of them felt guilty at some point in their life. So because of that they were support to Carver and I think they could really understand him.

"Our memories of our loved ones are the pearl that we form around the grain of grief that causes us pain."

But like I said,I could understand them all: And Judge Edwards and Eli's parents. All people react different to death,and even though I can't justify some of theirs action,I understand.Also,I think romance in this book wasn't pushed and it was just perfect,even though it had not very big role in the book. Also,I liked that Jesmyn has synesthesia,it was a nice touch to the book,and it showed how colors change in us when we lose a loved one.

"Dignity is overrated. People can live without it. I know because I did. But people can't live without laughter. I'll gladly trade dignity for laughter,because dignity is cheap and laughter is worth everything."

Although,what I think this story was lacking,was Carvers parents. I just wish we saw more of them and how they were feeling about this all. But I LOVED the scene where Carver lies between them in bed,it was so heartbreaking.
Stories  that Carver was telling to Dr Mendez were a good example how sometimes destiny is something we can't escape. And idea of Goodbye days is mind blowing! I liked it so much.

"One day I wrote a text message that killed my three  best friends. Now do I have your attention? Sure,I've written a few stories here and there,but my masterwork was a two-sentence-long text message that ended three stories. I'm the only writer in the world who makes stories disappear by writing."

So,in the end,if you ask me should you read this book,my answer is - YES! Go start reading this now! Make yourself a tea,get wipes and dive into this book which will make cry,laugh and cry again,but I guarantee you - it will stay with you forever. 

Rate: 5 ladybugs :) 

Title: Goodbye days

Author: Jeff Zentner 

Publisher: Penguin Random House UK Children’s

Genre: Social Issues, Mental health

Release Date: March 7th

Pages: 416

Format: eARC via NetGalley

Order book here.

About the author

Jeff Zentner lives in Nashville, Tennessee. He came to writing through music, starting his creative life as a guitarist and eventually becoming a songwriter. He’s released five albums and appeared on recordings with Iggy Pop, Nick Cave, Warren Ellis, Thurston Moore, Debbie Harry, Mark Lanegan, and Lydia Lunch, among others.

Now he writes novels for young adults. He became interested in writing for young adults after volunteering at the Tennessee Teen Rock Camp and Southern Girls Rock Camp. As a kid, his parents would take him to the library and drop him off, where he would read until closing time. He worked at various bookstores through high school and college.

He speaks fluent Portuguese, having lived in the Amazon region of Brazil for two years.

Connect with the author at the twitter @jeffzentner and you can also contact him at the 

http://www.jeffzentnerbooks.com.