Skip to main content

Far From the Tree by Robin Benway

Publication Date: October 3rd, 2017
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary
My Goodreads Rating: 5/5
Source: Publisher (Through Edelweiss)

This is the story of three siblings who didn't know they could rely on each other.

Joaquin has been in the foster system for 17 years. He's lived the hard life, trying to rid himself of emotions. Finding out that he's an older brother is not what he needs, specially not when his younger sisters want to bond over their biological mother.

Grace is an only child, adopted at birth- or so she thought. Now she finds out that she's a middle child, in a family that doesn't want to get closer to one another.

Maya is the sarcastic younger sibling, who always thought she was the older child. Adopted at birth by a well-to-do family of red-heads, her younger sister was the miracle birth that came after her adoption.

The siblings struggle to form memorable connections, share secrets with each other, or even communicate like regular siblings. The thing is, there's nothing regular about these siblings- they never even knew they had siblings!


I loved this book! I think it's the perfect book for so many of you! It discusses familial issues, and weaves between the stories of three adopted kids, their biological family, their adopted families and issues they face at school. It's so complex, but Benway manages to make it really simple to understand. 

As the siblings begin to confide in one another, the plot becomes less and less complicated, but somehow never loses any of its intricacy. The stories continue to inter-weave and come back to each other. The characters all develop fabulously through the novel- which may also be because they reveal more about themselves to each other through the course of the novel. 

Can we also please discuss the title? It's such an appropriate title for the book, and it's not a title that its obviously mentioned in the book either. I love how Benway has created her title around her story, without giving away too much about the novel. 

This is a book I'd recommend for fans of young adult fiction. If anyone likes reading about dysfunctional families, this is definitely a book for you! Anyone looking for a heavy yet simple book to read while travelling- you've hit the jackpot! 

Basically, the book follows a unique concept that merges the stories of three families into the story of one large family. I loved it- and I'm sure you will too!

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I received no other compensation in for this post. 
Labels:

Comments

  1. UnknownOctober 5, 2017 at 6:41 PM

    I love books about families relationships, especially siblings! and yes the title is very compelling!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Hey guys! Thanks for stopping by! I'd love to hear your thoughts and suggestions, so be sure to leave a comment!

Popular posts from this blog

The Hero, by Rabindranath Tagore

 The narrative poem" The Hero" was written by Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore. Set in a young boy's imaginations this narrative has all the necessary elements and is rich in imagery. The characters, plot, setting, theme, climax and idea are all very clearly outlined.  The setting of the poem falls within the boy's imagination. It is described to have 'spiky grass' and a 'narrow broken path'. It is also mentioned that the country is 'strange and dangerous'. The rurality of the setting is further accentuated when Tagore talks of the 'cattle' and 'wide fields'.
14 comments
Read more

I cannot remember my mother by Rabindranath Tagore

 The poem has been titled " I cannot remember my mother". It attracted me for some reason, for I thought that surely, a poem couldn't be completely empty. There had to be some form of nostalgia, or memory in a poem about no remembrance.  I realized after reading it, that I was right. In fact, the poem's title can be considered an oxymoron. However, the extent to which this poem is nostalgic, the amount of tiny details in this poem, wow. But I don't suppose Tagore was a Literature Nobel Laureate for nothing. This poem has sensitized its audience to the poet's colossal loss, though the poet ,it seems,has made no effort to do so. There is nothing superfluous about his writing, and the poem seems like a true expression of his love for his mother. It talks about how his mother managed to leave her presence on everything before she passed away, and how those little memories of his,form an incomplete memory of his mother.
Post a Comment
Read more

One by Shawnee Kellie

  The poem "One" by Shawnee Kellie is a very interesting and thought-provoking piece of writing. The poem spreads the message that it is not only a large group of people that can make a change, but one idea, one thought, one human that can help make the world a better place. 
Post a Comment
Read more