Debbie's Reviews > Hello Beautiful

4.5, rounded up

Had me boo-hooing at the end there…

Okay, this one had me all teary and bleary at the end. Now that doesn’t happen very often; Cold Carmela is my usual reading persona when there’s heartwarming family stuff happening. Oh, but the drama! It’s not over-the-top, thank goodness. It’s just that the characters’ lives and loves are so real and sometimes so heavy, that I was all in, and there I was having to pull out my hankies. The author really knows how to get those tears a-rollin.’

I didn’t expect to love this book. One, it has gotten a lot of hype, which often leads to a letdown. Two, it’s a family saga, a genre which lately has been a hard sell. I snarl if a book is overly traditional, has lots of get-togethers, or is predictable, wholesome, or all kumbaya. (I know, I’m so damn grumpy, lol!) Three, the book sort of thinks of itself like the novel Little Women, which is even cited a few times. I wasn’t crazy about that book so didn’t like the references or the fact that this story emulated it. But I didn’t have to worry, because the book grabbed me right away.

The book reminded me a little of Strout’s novels, in that Napolitano makes ordinary seem so damn interesting—there’s nothing special about the characters or the family dynamics. But I got drawn into the story and was rooting for all the characters. I could have hung out with them even beyond the 418 pages. (Yes, sort of a long book, but that was okay.)

This is a story about four very close sisters and a broken husband, with a couple of kids thrown in. Their relationships are complicated and rich, and the characters are unique. Each sister is so different, it was nice not to see carbon copies. I felt like I could see into the characters’ souls, that’s how well-drawn they are. There is love but there is also estrangement, verklempt-ness, mental illness (depression), loyalty, stubbornness, weakness, and big ties that bind. Most of the characters are flawed. Some choices were bad and I just wanted to hit the characters upside the head, but I could see why the choices were made. After all, I was oozing sympathy left and right, thanks to the brilliance of the author.

Although I don’t have to like all the characters to like a book, I had some level of fondness for each of them—well, except for old mommy-poo. But she had a minor role so she wasn’t in my face. There’s one sister with a Type A personality, which I often don’t like because Type A-ers are bossy and are wound too tight. The husband is passive, and I usually don’t go for passive, either. But yep, there I was engrossed, and sympathetic toward both of them.

No doubt many readers will identify with a person or a relationship in this book. I had some sister memories going on for sure. And the dad reminded me of my dad in one respect: he made each of his kids feel special. Before reading the book, I had been thinking of how my father made each of us five kids feel like we were his favorite. Now that’s a good dad! And I’m guessing it’s rare. In the book, you could tell the four sisters felt the same. The “Hello, Beautiful” in the title refers to the dad saying that praise-phrase to one of his daughters.

I found a couple of logistical problems, but no biggies. In one scene, all the family is at an airport gate seeing someone off. Nope, no one except the traveler is allowed at the gate, of course, so I didn’t like them there, lol.

Check this book out if you want a rich family drama that is well-written, well-paced, and has complex characters that you can’t take your eyes off. And have a tissue close by! Meanwhile, I’m moving up Napolitano’s earlier Dear Edward, you better believe it.