Review: Why We Broke Up

Why We Broke Up by Daniel Handler

Official Website

Description: 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.

Review: OH MY SWEET LORD.

I don't even know how to write a review for this book, so please excuse my scattered thoughts.

I saw this book in my library on Monday. My first thought was holy shit this is heavy. Then, oh cool, illustrations. And then, holy crapballs DANIEL HANDLER?!?!?!?!?!!??1/`EMGJBNFNBFHBJFDBFHGJNFB

Yup. I was sold.
Why We Broke Up tells the tale of Min Green & Ed Slaterton's relationship through letters written by Min. The letters tell the story of why they broke up. (HEY) Min is breaking up with him by throwing a box of all their memories at his front door. These memories are objects that tell the whole story. There's items from the first day they met, to the last day of their relationship. She is breaking up with him through this letter and the box.

I'll start with Min. If you are a guest of the internet nowadays, you'll know that Zooey Deschanel is queen of the quirky girls. You know her character on New Girl? How she is hip and unique and different and so nerdy XD and all those great weird things about her? That's Min. But Min is the girl who was quirky before all those girls. She is down-to-earth, has a male best friend, enjoys old movies, and jazz music. She hangs out with the artsy kids, but she's not artsy herself. One of my favorite components of this book is how Ed, the basketball co-captian and at least five other characters, describe Min as being artsy. And she has to remind them that she's not artsy. And oh my god that is so accurate. I mean, the popular kids just assume that you're arty because you don't play sports. And the way that Min just shoots them down because she says in the book, i can't draw for my life, i can't sing, i can't produce music. It's so funny and true. That's the stereotype that kids use nowadays. And they assume she's arty because she's different. But besides the artsy-ness of Min, she's just a girl who got in over her head. She fell in love, and she got hurt. Everyone's gotta go through it. It's a rite of passage. But I'm glad she still has her friends at the end to support her. 

Ed. Ed is a douchebag. That's it.

The writing was brilliant. It was one big tirade, it was full of emotion, and it was truly the writing of a 16 year old girl. At times there was run-on sentences, but it fit with the book. I was a huge fan of A Series of Unfortunate Events, and this book made all those young young adult feels come back. I felt like I was in the book. Like I was an unseen witness to all the events. The continuity was flawless. It flowed, and the author brought up things from 100 pages ago.

Overall, Why We Broke Up is a must-read for fans of romance, revenge, and little tokens of friendship.

You know I wanted to be a director, but you could never truly see the movies in my head and that, Ed, is why we broke up.

 -Why We Broke Up//David Handler