Review: Why We Broke Up
I hope Daniel Handler made a huge amount of money on those Lemony Snicket books, so he can continue breaking my heart with the projects he publishes under his own name.
Why We Broke Up shares a lot of setup with and many of the merits of The Basic Eight. Both capture and breathe life into the vulnerability and rush of adolescence. Handler’s recreation of being in love and being in study hall both resound with authenticity.
To its considerable benefit, Why We Broke Up is more intimate and personal than The Basic Eight. Everyone in Why We Broke Up has real depth and motivation. No one is a symbol or a plot device. Or just those things. Everyone has irredeemably bad moments and inexplicably selfless ones. Everyone has best and worst times, and no one gets away with being words on paper.
Its a deep trifle and a moving read.
Strongly recommended.