Why We Broke Up
By Daniel Handler & Maira Kalman(illustrator)
Published: December 27th 2011 by Little, Brown Books
Read from: March 9-16, 2012
Number of pages: 354
Source: HS Library
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Summary: I'm telling you why we broke up, Ed. I'm writing it in this letter, the whole truth of why it happened.
Min Green and Ed Slaterton are breaking up, so Min is writing Ed a letter and giving him a box. Inside the box is why they broke up. Two bottle caps, a movie ticket, a folded note, a box of matches, a protractor, books, a toy truck, a pair of ugly earrings, a comb from a motel room, and every other item collected over the course of a giddy, intimate, heartbreaking relationship. Item after item is illustrated and accounted for, and then the box, like a girlfriend, will be dumped.
Min Green and Ed Slaterton are breaking up, so Min is writing Ed a letter and giving him a box. Inside the box is why they broke up. Two bottle caps, a movie ticket, a folded note, a box of matches, a protractor, books, a toy truck, a pair of ugly earrings, a comb from a motel room, and every other item collected over the course of a giddy, intimate, heartbreaking relationship. Item after item is illustrated and accounted for, and then the box, like a girlfriend, will be dumped.
This one kind of missed the
mark for me. I had high hopes for Why We Broke up. The concept, a girl
leaving a box of mementos on her ex’s front door along with a letter
explain why they broke up, was something I felt most teens (and adults)
could relate to. Sadly, I think the story falls short of living up to
its potential.
The other thing I liked about this book is the art work. Each chapter starts with an illustration of one of the items in the box, and the chapter explains the origin of that particular item and how it came into Min’s position and what it has to do with her relationship with Ed. I feel the illustrations really add to the concept and the story. The book itself is a miniature box containing all the mementos of Min and Ed’s relationship.
Another problem I had with this book is that the entire 350 page book is the letter to her ex, which apparently she pens in an afternoon. In addition the impossibility that she could have written the entire story down (which hand written would be much longer than 350 pages unless her handwriting is very small) it’s the way she writes that bothers me. Min will recount entire conversations word for word, I don’t know about you but I don’t think I can recount a conversation verbatim this morning let alone one I had months ago. With that in mind I feel the story would have worked better if (A) the large conversations had been left out and the memories were more generalized and recounted the way people actually talk about the past. or (B) split each chapter in to 3 parts 1. The illustration 2. The letter. 3. The flashback that goes with the letter. Either option would work better than how it’s written now.
I understand that this “letter” or book is a Min’s way of getting over her ex, which as I said earlier I really liked. I find writing is a great way to get your feelings out of your head so you can analyze them. Not to mention dumping the entire letter and the box off at your ex’s to wash your hands of them and very plainly state “I’m done crying over you” is very empowering. The jury is, however,still out on if I believe Min expects Ed to actually read this “letter” she has left on his doorstep. I found myself wondering several times while reading the book if she is actually expecting him to read this, because for the life of me I can’t see Ed (or any teenage boy for that matter) reading 350+ pages about why they broke up. Now if this is just something she drops on his doorstep and never expects him to look at that is understandable, but then I can’t help but put myself in the author’s shoes. I guess what I’m saying is that if Min doesn’t expect her ex to read the book size letter she has written how can the author expect a reader to stick with the story to the end.
I’ll say it again, the concept of this book was great, but it really just fell flat for me which is sad because this was one of those “I have to read this one before the kids get it” books for me. The story however, was just too drawn out and I found myself on more than one occasion contemplating putting the book down and picking up something else instead.
The Good
Before I get into the nitty-gritty of why I didn’t
enjoy this book as much as I hoped let’s start off with what I did
like. The concept was great, and something I could absolutely relate
to. I had boxes full of mementos for a couple of my high school
boyfriends. One of them I still have and another was very ceremoniously
tossed in to the garbage not by me, but my now husband, then fiancé
when we were moving into our current home. So having a few ex-boyfriend
boxes of my own I really like the idea of giving it all back to the guy
to let him figure out what to do with it all. The whole concept is
rather cleansing, which is the point, because I’m sure Min’s ex Ed
isn’t going to read the book of a letter that gets dropped on his
doorstep along with all the junk inside. (More on that later.) The other thing I liked about this book is the art work. Each chapter starts with an illustration of one of the items in the box, and the chapter explains the origin of that particular item and how it came into Min’s position and what it has to do with her relationship with Ed. I feel the illustrations really add to the concept and the story. The book itself is a miniature box containing all the mementos of Min and Ed’s relationship.
The Not-so-Good
As far as the
characters in the book none of them were all that likeable, especially
our protagonist Min. At first I liked Min, she was into old movies and
that was fun at first because I enjoy old movies myself. Now I’m not a
film buff so I don’t know every old movie ever made so when I didn’t
recognize the first few movies she referenced I figured they were maybe a
bit more obscure than what I’m familiar with. Min, however, continues
to reference these obscure films and I realized that these movies are
all made up for the story. The author could have easily used real films
so at least the readers could connect with Min on a more personal level,
because as I said before I highly doubt her ex would actually take the
time to read what she wrote. Another problem I had with this book is that the entire 350 page book is the letter to her ex, which apparently she pens in an afternoon. In addition the impossibility that she could have written the entire story down (which hand written would be much longer than 350 pages unless her handwriting is very small) it’s the way she writes that bothers me. Min will recount entire conversations word for word, I don’t know about you but I don’t think I can recount a conversation verbatim this morning let alone one I had months ago. With that in mind I feel the story would have worked better if (A) the large conversations had been left out and the memories were more generalized and recounted the way people actually talk about the past. or (B) split each chapter in to 3 parts 1. The illustration 2. The letter. 3. The flashback that goes with the letter. Either option would work better than how it’s written now.
I understand that this “letter” or book is a Min’s way of getting over her ex, which as I said earlier I really liked. I find writing is a great way to get your feelings out of your head so you can analyze them. Not to mention dumping the entire letter and the box off at your ex’s to wash your hands of them and very plainly state “I’m done crying over you” is very empowering. The jury is, however,still out on if I believe Min expects Ed to actually read this “letter” she has left on his doorstep. I found myself wondering several times while reading the book if she is actually expecting him to read this, because for the life of me I can’t see Ed (or any teenage boy for that matter) reading 350+ pages about why they broke up. Now if this is just something she drops on his doorstep and never expects him to look at that is understandable, but then I can’t help but put myself in the author’s shoes. I guess what I’m saying is that if Min doesn’t expect her ex to read the book size letter she has written how can the author expect a reader to stick with the story to the end.
I’ll say it again, the concept of this book was great, but it really just fell flat for me which is sad because this was one of those “I have to read this one before the kids get it” books for me. The story however, was just too drawn out and I found myself on more than one occasion contemplating putting the book down and picking up something else instead.
This book was not forme, but that doesn't mean you won't like it. As I said the concept of the book is really great. I loved the idea of taking all the mementos you gather during a relationship and dumping them on your ex's front door. Most of the students who I've spoken to who read this book told me they enjoyed it. So maybe this is a YA title that truly is better enjoyed if you are a teen, I guess I'm just too far removed from that part of my life (even though it was only 10 years ago) to truly enjoy this book for what it is
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