Brief Chronicle of Another Stupid Heartbreak

Written by Adi Alsaid

Narrated by Nancy Wu

Dumped by her boyfriend the summer after senior year, teen love and relationship columnist Lu Charles has hit a wall with her writing. The words just won't come to her like they used to and if she doesn't find a topic for her column, she'll lose her gig at hip online magazine Misnomer, and the college scholarship that goes along with it. Her best friend, Pete, thinks she should write through her own pain, but when Lu overhears another couple planning a precollege breakup just like hers, she becomes convinced that they're the answer to cracking her writer's block. And when she meets them-super-practical Iris and cute, sweet Cal-and discovers they're postponing their breakup until the end of the summer, she has to know more. Have Cal and Iris prolonged their own misery by staying together, knowing the end is in sight? Or does the secret to figuring out all this love business-and getting over it-lie with them? One thing is certain-if Lu can't make a breakthrough before summer is over, she can kiss her future goodbye. From the acclaimed author of Let's Get Lost and North of Happy comes a touching exploration of love, relationships and the pain of breaking up.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Apr 30, 2019
• ISBN: 9781980030218

Adi Alsaid

Born and raised in Mexico City, Adi Alsaid is the author of several young adult novels including Let's Get Lost, We Didn't Ask For This, and North of Happy, a Kirkus Best Book nominee. He's also the editor of Come On In: 15 stories of immigration and finding home . He currently lives in Chicago with his wife and two cats, where he occasionally spills hot sauce on things (and cats).

Reviews for Brief Chronicle of Another Stupid Heartbreak

[Christa J Seeley · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

The main character in this book, Lou, is incredibly frustrating and the book starts to get repetitive as she keeps ending up in the same position time after time.

[roses7184_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I'm going to be completely transparent with you, and let you know that this book came into my life at a time when I wasn't prepared for it. To all of my other mood readers out there, you'll understand what I mean. Brief Chronicle of Another Stupid Heartbreak is a really sweet book. It's all about having love, losing love, choosing love, and figuring out that weird balance that you have to achieve when high school is behind you and college looms ahead. It's about that last summer, and the pressure to do something with it. This book is everything I needed as a teen going through that, and that's also why it was so hard for me to love it now. I'll explain.

First off, Lu isn't the easiest character to fall in love with. My initial reaction towards her wasn't great, because she felt so self-centered and lost. However as I read, I had to keep reminding myself that I was once that person too. A person adrift in life, grasping at anyone who looked like they had their lives together. A person who thought they had love, and lost it in a way that felt utterly devastating on all levels. I read on, and I realized that I understood Lu more than I wanted to. She was a passionate human being, who needed some guidance. She was a good friend and a good daughter, who was too caught up in her own issues to really see how that was slipping away. I'll admit, by the time I reached the end of this book I actually loved that girl. Give Lu a chance. She's worth it.

On the plus side, the interactions in the book were also something that I ate up eagerly. Lu's friendships felt real, and whole. Her relationship with her mother cracked me up, because that's how my mom was when I was a teen too. I loved seeing the two of them exist in a space without judgement, and filled with love. There's nothing more important than a parental love when you're floating adrift. I also more than loved the fact that Peter, Lu's best friend, was never on the "love" scale. A book like this would have had me thinking that he'd be the twist ending boyfriend. I won't spoil, but trust me when I say that the way this ends is perfect. I appreciated Alsaid for just letting a friendship be a friendship.

My other issue, in all honesty, was the pace of this book. Lu's brain isn't an easy one to be caught up in, especially when she turns to procrastination instead of dealing with her emotions. I felt like, while the vast majority of the story line felt solid, there were portions that just dragged. The longer that Lu pushed away her feelings, the more I felt like there were long pauses where nothing happened. Since I was frustrated with her for nearly the first half of this book, it made it harder to read on. As I said though, I did change my tune! I still wish this was a little shorter though.

I think what made me love Lu in the end was her writing. The amount of emotion poured onto these pages, once she let herself really feel, caught up me. You've probably noticed that my reviews are usually very heavy on the emotion. I connect with books through my emotions, and that's how I share my feelings about them. Alsaid created a character who felt very much like I felt, and that helped a ton. This book is a sweet, honest look at what love can mean. I know that there are a ton of readers out there who are going to fall hopelessly in love with it.

In the end, I'd rate this at a solid three stars. It wasn't always the easiest read, but the story was worth it. I found myself reminiscing of a time that I hadn't thought about in a while. I loved the nods to small gestures of love, and holding on to things even when it feels pointless. If you are a fan of stories that will make you smile, and possibly make you tear up, this is for you. Enjoy.

[hes7 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Venture into the experience of teenage love and heartbreak with a cast full of likeable characters in Adi Alsaid’s Brief Chronicle of Another Stupid Heartbreak.

Lu Charles gets dumped at the beginning of the summer before heading to college. Her resulting case of writer’s block could prove detrimental to her future, but when she luckily stumbles across Iris and Cal, she might have found the solution she needed. Understanding the challenges of continuing a relationship into college, the couple planned an end-of-the-summer breakup. As Lu gets to know them, the story unfolds with great consideration to relationships—what’s worth keeping and letting go, endings and making space for new beginnings.

At times witty and heartfelt, Brief Chronicle of Another Stupid Heartbreak is an all-around good, entertaining YA read. Presenting a different perspective on traditional romances of the genre, there’s a lot to love about it.

I received a complimentary copy of this book and the opportunity to provide an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review, and all the opinions I have expressed are my own.