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Dear Edward

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Dear Edward

By: Ann Napolitano
Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell
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About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

A luminous, life-affirming novel about a 12-year-old boy who is the sole survivor of a deadly plane crash.

One summer morning, a flight takes off from New York to Los Angeles. There are 216 passengers aboard: among them a young woman taking a pregnancy test in the airplane toilet; a Wall Street millionaire flirting with the air hostess; an injured soldier returning from Afghanistan; and two beleaguered parents moving across the country with their adolescent sons, bickering over who gets the window seat. When the plane suddenly crashes in a field in Colorado, the younger of these boys, 12-year-old Edward Adler, is the sole survivor.

Dear Edward depicts Edward's life in the crash's aftermath as he struggles to make sense of the meaning of his survival and the strangeness of his sudden fame and find his place in the world without his family. In his new home with his aunt and uncle, the only solace comes from his friendship with the girl next door, Shay. Together Edward and Shay make a startling discovery: hidden in his uncle's garage are sacks of letters from the relatives of the other passengers, addressed to Edward.

As Edward comes of age against the backdrop of sudden tragedy, he must confront some of life's most profound questions: how do we make the most of the time we are given? And what does it mean not just to survive but to truly live?

©2020 Ann Napolitano (P)2020 Penguin Audio
Coming of Age Family Life Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Small Town & Rural Women's Fiction Survival Aviation Tear-jerking

Critic Reviews

"Astonishing." (Marian Keyes)

"A rich, big-hearted tapestry. Fans of Room and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close will be spellbound by Dear Edward." (Chloe Benjamin, author of The Immortalists)

"A profoundly beautiful, page-turning story of mystery, loss, and wonder." (Hannah Tinti, author of The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley and The Good Thief)

All stars
Most relevant  
Was afraid this story might be maudlin but it was delicious. Fabulous voice talent as well. Five stars.

No notes!

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Not quite sure where to go with this … I wasn’t quite sure where it was going most of the way through..yes there was a good enough storyline amongst the words, but if failed to really grab me. Her latest read is much better in my ( humble ) opinion

Quite slow

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I found this book very interesting and also very sad in parts I found myself saying poor Edward along the way. The outcome was all it could be and more.

Great story

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Could have been a five star if a third of the book in the middle was chopped out. Felt like a hard slog / ground hog day for a lot of it.
Story was good but just didn’t get the chance to succeed as well as it could of.
Would recommend if you’re stuck in quarantine or flag if you’re pressed for time.

Sloooow

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Dear Edward took me away from my podcasts for a week! An interesting insightful read.

Engrossed

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I was recommended to read this book as I struggled to deal with my own grief, and in differing ways, I really related to Edward’s healing process.

Love the portrayal of grief

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I am not sure why I chose this fiction book but I am glad I did.
It took me on a journey of immense heartache, courage and resilience as played out by the story line and characters.
A real gift!

A story that I found compelling

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Sorry, but I couldn't abide the relentless jumping between the inner monologue of every single character. Maybe it says more about me than the writer, or the thousands who love this book, but I also couldn't get past the constant "he feels like...", "she thinks that...", "he wonders whether...", etc. I prefer a 'show don't tell' style, but this one tells, tells, tells. I also think Edward's inner monologue was way in advance of a 12-year-old, but this may be intentional to convey his response to trauma. Shame, I did like the premise, and I'm sure the story itself is fine, but I just couldn't get past the style and gave up about a quarter of the way through.

In balance, I should say that, if you don't mind stories which spell out what every character is thinking, then this is well-produced and Cassandra Campbell narrates beautifully with empathy and compassion.

POV ping pong

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The story of huge monumental tragedy and trauma and hardly a mention of grief. Her other book is much much better.

Disappointing

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In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.