More Happy Than Not
Author: Adam Silvera
Grade: A
Aaron is still reeling from a family tragedy and the aftershocks on his life. When his girlfriend Genevieve goes away for a few weeks he finds himself getting closer to new friend Thomas. And then he finds himself developing much deeper feelings for Thomas. The kind that have him wondering if a revolutionary memory altering procedure might be what he needs to stay straight.
This book has been sitting on my TBR pile for a long time. I think it might have somehow thrown itself at me. In all honesty I was interested in the blurb from Silvera’s new book, History is All You Left Me (which comes out on January 17th), and thought to myself, “Hey! I already have a book of his!”
This was a really fast and absorbing read that deals with a lot of tough issues- including homophobia and suicide. There’s also sex, a bit of drug dealing, an assault that puts someone in the hospital. Aaron and his family are dealing with a great deal of grief and there’s a side plot dealing with the murder of an old friend and his families grief.
I do think it deals with those things well and that Aaron is a great character. I nitpicked the book at times but honestly I think that comes from an age thing. Like there were times I just wanted to say to Aaron, “No. This is not a good friend.” “No, you can’t make someone who you want them to be.” “You can’t rely on other people to fix these parts of yourself…” But that’s just my personal response to the book and I have to say that the “twist” did a lot to kind of lessen the nitpicking for me.
The whole memory wiping thing was very Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. But hey, there’s a reason I loved that move and I totally believe that a lot of people would take their chances on the procedure if it meant they wouldn’t hurt anymore. I also think Silvera did a good job of balancing that element in the story.
I did really like Aaron’s family, Thomas and Genevieve. I had a hard time with his neighborhood friends and I found it a bit hard to connect with any of those characters or Aaron when he was with them.
The end definitely left me with a very bittersweet feeling.
Recommend: Yes. I’m glad I finally read this one and will be picking up History is All You Left Me.