We Are Okay

We Are Okay by Nina LaCour - ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Description from the Publisher

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. 

An intimate whisper that packs an indelible punch, We Are Okay is Nina LaCour at her finest. This gorgeously crafted and achingly honest portrayal of grief will leave you urgent to reach across any distance to reconnect with the people you love.

My Review
I LOVED this book! Reading We Are Okay feels like you are experiencing a depressive episode just like the protagonist, Marin. This book isn't so much plot-driven as it is character-driven. The focus is on Marin and her journey of processing the death of someone close to her and finding out the truth. Meanwhile, she is working through repairing a damaged relationship with her best friend, Mabel. 

The Good: 

• I loved how this book switched between past and present. It allowed Marin's story to reveal itself slowly and gives readers a little bit of breathing room. 
• The accuracy of depression. Nina LaCour's writing allows readers to experience the heavy, hopelessness that is depression. Her prose is beautiful. 
• The issues in this novel were addressed wonderfully. Issues include depression, mental illness, grief, friendship, family, first love, bisexuality, homelessness, loneliness, lack of belonging, and growing up. 
• Marin's character development. Because this was a character-driven novel, we really get to see Marin grow through her thoughts and actions. 
• I ugly sobbed throughout this book. The story was so incredibly touching. 
• I related to Marin's depression. Readers who have experienced a loss of a loved one will find solace in this book. 
• Because this book dealt with loss, it made me remember good memories of my father and grandmother. Their deaths were so traumatic for me, and it was nice to be reminded of why I love them so much. 
• Marin really connected her self to Jane Eyre, one of my favorite classic novels. 
• This book has my heart. 
• This book shows that while depression feels like it is never going to end, there is hope, and we will be okay. 

The Not-So-Good:

• While this book is meant to mirror depression and it's ups and downs, the book did feel a bit slow in the middle. 

“I was okay just a moment ago. I will learn how to be okay again.” 

“The trouble with denial is that when the truth comes, you aren't ready.” 

“I wonder if there's a secret current that connects people who have lost something. Not in the way that everyone loses something, but in the way that undoes your life, undoes your self, so that when you look at your face it isn't yours anymore.”