Starting with the positive:

Compelling story about three biological siblings (Joaquin, 17; Grace, 16; Maya, 15) whose mother gave them up for adoption when they were small. They meet for the first time, get to know each other, and help each other work out their issues. It's interesting how they've had very different lives, but still have similarities, like how they eat french fries with mayonnaise and how they aren't good at sustaining romantic relationships.

There have been a lot of good books recently about the effects of growing up the in the foster care system, and you can add this one to the list.

It's also harrowing in its depiction of teen pregnancy resulting in adoption. It made me so, so sad.

Now the negative:

I can't believe this won the National Book Award! This is written in the third person so there is no forgiveness from me for the misuse and overuse of "literally" and some super lazy descriptive similes. This is a solid book, sure, but I'm baffled by it taking home a big literary prize. The ending was way too tidy. The message seemed to be that connecting to your biological relatives can heal the pain of being adopted -- which may very well be the case if every single bio relative you meet happens to be very caring and amazing, but it felt a bit shallow to me. Especially Joaquin being miserable over not having any baby pictures and then being given his baby pictures in the end. Too good to feel true. ( )

I loved the phrasing in this book, like poetry ( )

I used the Seattle Public Library's "Your Next Five Books" service to find this one. Narrated by a favorite of mine, Julia Whelan, this young adult novel centers around the themes of family relationships and secrets. It's a feel-good story, and I chose it for that reason. ( )

This was such a sweet and lovely story that I really enjoyed! All three main characters are truly fabulous, and I lvoed learning about their similarities and all the "secrets" they were keeping and all the walls they put up. And Maya's gayness was pretty darn great, too. None of this felt contrived at all, as I feel like adoption stories are frequently in danger of being.

Also, RAFE. I'M IN LOVE. I'LL TAKE HIM. Gosh. ( )

3.5 Stars ( )