Review: “We Are Okay” by Nina LaCour

 Rating:

You go through life thinking there’s so much you need…

Until you leave with only your phone, your wallet, and a picture of your mother.

Marin hasn’t spoken to anyone from her old life since the day she left everything behind. No one knows the truth about those final weeks. Not even her best friend, Mabel. But even thousands of miles away from the California coast, at college in New York, Marin still feels the pull of the life and tragedy she’s tried to outrun. Now, months later, alone in an emptied dorm for winter break, Marin waits. Mabel is coming to visit, and Marin will be forced to face everything that’s been left unsaid and finally confront the loneliness that has made a home in her heart.

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Trigger warnings: Depression, grief, loss of family member

We are Okay was an amazing and heart shattering book with intense character development. Marin’s grandfather, the only family she had left, passed away a few weeks ago and to cope with the grief, she leaves for college to New York early. She doesn’t keep in touch with any of the folks back home including her best friend Mabel. When the book starts, we learn that Mabel is coming to visit her dorm for three days after four months of Marin not communicating with her.

Plot wise the book isn’t much, it’s very slow at times and little to nothing happens. But to me, the development Marin goes through during the book more than makes up for the lack of plot. The book isn’t about the actual story but about different types of relationships and dealing with grief. I was full on crying quite a bit during the book. My heart went out to both Marin and Mabel and everything they’ve both been through (Marin especially). It’s obvious LaCour put a lot of effort into creating these characters when and that shows up on the page.

I haven’t read any of Nina LaCour’s earlier books so I didn’t know what to expect with her writing and I was pleasantly surprised. Her writing is wonderful and she articulates herself beautifully and with incredible expertise. This is one of those books that are immensely quotable and leave you thinking about the dialogue days after you’re done reading it.