This is the kind of YA novel English teachers love and some teens will find life-changing while others will find slow and depressing—and both reactions are valid.

LaCour won the Printz Award for this, and the writing genuinely earns it. It's spare, poetic, and creates an aching intimacy that makes you feel every bit of Marin's isolation and grief. The LGBTQ+ representation is beautifully done—Marin and Mabel's relationship unfolds naturally, and the book never makes their queerness the problem (the problem is grief, secrets, and the human tendency to run from pain).

But let's be real: this is a quiet, sad book about a girl whose grandfather died (possibly by suicide) and who abandoned her entire life as a result. It's 256 pages of emotional excavation set in an empty dorm over winter break. If your teen gravitates toward literary fiction and can handle heavy themes, this is excellent. If they need plot momentum or lighter fare, this will feel like homework.

The mature content—drinking, sex, profanity—is present but not gratuitous. It's appropriate for the 14+ audience, though the Junior Library Guild recommends grades 11+, likely due to the emotional sophistication required. This isn't a book that will traumatize anyone, but it's definitely one that requires the right reader at the right time.