A Beginners Guide to Goodbye, Melanie Mosher
A Beginners Guide to Goodbye, Melanie Mosher
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A Beginner's Guide to Goodbye

Author: Melanie Mosher

Narrator: Cass Beauvais

Unabridged: 3 hr 58 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 11/04/2020


Synopsis

??Every summer, Laney's family visits their cottage on Tidnish Beach. Summertime on Nova Scotia's north shore is slow and sweet: there are long days in the water until fingers turn pruney, bottomless glasses of cherry Kool-Aid, and bonfires with the other families summering along the shore. But this year the baking heat and bright red sand provide cold comfort. This year Laney's little sister, Jenny, is gone.
Ten-year-old Laney grapples with the loss. She carries immense, secret guilt that she can only work out by writing letters to her sister. Laney's mother won't even say Jenny's name, so writing quickly becomes Laney's coping mechanism, to the detriment of her social skills. She avoids the other kids until she makes a new friend—one who doesn't look at her with pity.
It's a tough lesson for a preteen, but Laney must learn to acknowledge her grief in order to overcome it. When a situation arises and Laney needs to help her new friend, she finally understands that even though she will miss Jenny forever, she can find happiness again. A tender meditation on life and loss through the lens of a childhood summer, A Beginner's Guide to Goodbye will fill readers with warmth and spark important conversations.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Wunderdrugged on September 15, 2021

This title is nominated for the 2022 Hackmatack Award in the English fiction category. Laney is looking forward to her family's annual visit to their cottage on the north shore of Nova Scotia, but at the same time she is still processing the loss of her little sister, Jenny. Although her old friends......more

Goodreads review by Andrea on May 01, 2020

A Beginner's Guide to Goodbye by Melanie Mosher is aimed at a middle grade demographic, but its universal themes of friendship, loss, grief and guilt will certainly resonate with readers of all ages. I was initially drawn to this title by its utterly charming cover, and when I realized that it was s......more

Goodreads review by Digitally Lit on August 06, 2024

Julia: This book follows Laney, a ten year old girl who has been through a lot during her life. Her sister dies which leaves the whole family on high alert but when Laney meets a new friend, everything changes for the better. This book is set in rural Nova Scotia which is a great setting. It feels ver......more

Goodreads review by Lana on June 07, 2020

Melanie Mosher A BEGINNER'S GUIDE TO GOODBYE. Nimbus Publishing and Vagrant Press has reminded me again of how wonderful it is as an adult to read a young adult work of fiction. I received my copy two days ago and finished it in one early morning sitting. Thank you Kate Watson for sending it along a......more

Goodreads review by Travel By Bookmarks on November 14, 2022

This book was set in Nova Scotia, Canada where protagonist Laney and her family are vacationing at their cottage. Something is different this summer since Laney's younger sister, Jenny, is no longer with them. Ten-year-old Laney, struggling with this loss, is troubled by hidden guilt that she can on......more