Dear Lit Loves,
Greetings! For the last half of April 2022, I have been reading a book selection from the list generated by the book club I attend regularly in Cary, N.C. It is a book that the club will discuss later in the summer, but I thought it sounded intriguing so I decided to jump ahead and read it. The title of the book is Dear Edward and its author is Ann Napolitano. I had never read any books by this author, but she received her MFA from New York University and teaches writing at Brooklyn College's MFA program, NYU's Continuing and Professional Studies, and Gotham Writers Workshop.
The premise of the story is that a middle school age son named Eddie boards a flight with his family intended for a destination of Los Angeles as his mother has taken a position as a screenwriter on a television show and this leads to a family decision to relocate to California. Eddie sits with his older brother, Jordan, and his dad, Bruce, in economy class while mom takes a seat in first class so she can continue to write dialogue for the television show. Throughout the flight the reader is introduced to a variety of passengers on the plane - a flight attendant, a soldier, a woman fleeing her marriage, etc. And then suddenly the plane crashes in a field in Colorado and Eddie is the sole survivor. While recovering in a hospital, Eddie's maternal aunt and her husband are called and decide to essentially raise Eddie. They refer to him as Edward. Edward returns home with the aunt and uncle and must learn how to move forward with his life without his mom, dad, and brother. The remainder of the book explores how Edward is slowly able to process the tragedy, pick up the pieces of his life, and also how he handles being at the center of the country's fascination that he was the only one on board the plane who survived.
There were a variety of issues addressed in the book and one of utmost importance is that Edward essentially has to rebuild his life and his identity after losing his entire family. Obviously, cognitive behavioral therapy helps, but so does befriending a girl his age who lives next door to his aunt and uncle. Edward had previously been home-schooled by his dad and now he must attend a public middle and high school which is completely foreign to him. Thankfully, his new friend Shay attends the same school and helps him adjust. Additionally, the principal takes an interest in Edward and gives him the responsibility of helping to keep the ferns in his office alive by regularly coming by the office to water the plants. Eddie's aunt and uncle were never able to have kids, but had been trying. There only available bedroom is one that has been outfitted as a nursery which Edward for the most part rejects. Later, he is given his own bedroom in the basement of the house.
Interestingly, no matter who we lose in life whether it is a mom, dad, or sibling, most of us have to inevitably face what to do with our deceased relatives' belongings. In this case, a lot of the boxes of clothes are shipped to Edward's aunt and uncle's home where they reside in the room outfitted as a nursery. Edward notices his aunt begin wearing one of his mother's blouses which the aunt hopes will possibly help instill in her some of her sister's bravery. Next, Edward begins wearing his brother's bright orange parka. Everyone deals with grief differently, but I know when my own father died, I claimed three Atlanta Braves' caps that he wore everywhere along with his watch. There was something about those items that to this day continue to help me feel that my dad is still with me and this brings me some peace.
When Edward discovers that the family members of people who died on the flight have been writing to him asking him to do various tasks in memory of their loved one, he and his friend Shay begin keeping track of all the requests and both try to complete as many as they deem important and possible. To me, this is where the reader sees other people coping with grief through writing and trying to stay in touch with the last person who might have seen or spoken to their loved one. It made me grateful that I was with my father when he passed away because in many respects it gives me peace to know he was not by himself when he died.
Finally, I think there was the theme of just the sheer randomness of life events and the idea that we often live as if we are guaranteed to be here tomorrow when really no one knows where they will be or what will have happened to them five minutes, five hours, or five years from now. Thus, many of the people who write to Edward urge him to not waste time and seize the day. The best part of the book for me was the ending. I will not give it away, but it left me feeling like Edward had come full circle after the crash and was on his way to bigger and better things.
An absolute joy of a book to read. I highly recommend you read it for yourself and think about how you would handle this same situation. See for yourself what themes prick your interest. A job well-done Ms. Napolitano!
Best,
Grace (Amy)
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