Cures for Heartbreak

By Margo Rabb

"IF SHE DIES, I'll die," are the words 15-year-old Mia Perlman writes in her journal the night her mother is diagnosed with cancer. Nine days later, Mia's mother is dead, and Mia, her older sister, and her father must find a way to live on in the face of sudden, unfathomable loss. But even in grief, there is the chance for new beginnings in this poignant, funny, and hopeful novel.


From the Hardcover edition.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Kids
• Release date: Aug 12, 2008
• ISBN: 9780375848902

Margo Rabb

Margo Rabb is the author of the novels Kissing in America and Cures for Heartbreak; both received four starred reviews and were named to multiple best-of-the-year lists. Her essays and short stories have appeared in the New York Times, The Atlantic, and Seventeen and have been broadcast on NPR. She received the grand prize in the Zoetrope short story contest, first prize in the Atlantic fiction contest, and a PEN Syndicated Fiction Project Award. Margo grew up in Queens, NY, and currently lives near Philadelphia with her family. Visit her online at www.margorabb.com.

Reviews for Cures for Heartbreak

[jenj5 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Mia is in her freshmen year of high school when her mother is diagnosed with cancer - 12 days later Mia's mother dies and Mia is left trying to figure out how to go on living. 3 months later her father has a heart attack, but survives. Now Mia's attending Healthy Heart programs with her dad, trying to navigate romantic waters, and struggling to keep her grades up at school. Based on Rabb's own experiences with losing her mother and father when she was a young adult, "Cures" is told in loosely connected sections some of which have been published previously.

[abbylibrarian_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Mia's mother is diagnosed with cancer and then dies 12 days later. While grieving for her mother, Mia also has to deal with her father's heart attack and her older sister leaving for college. Mia has a lot on her plate and the hospital social worker's advice is to go shopping... Throughout the year after her mother's death Mia somehow figures out how to cope in this touching novel based on the author's own experience. It deals with a sad topic without being depressing.

[imbookingit · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I found this book to be very well written and touching.When Mia is 15, her mother is diagnosed with melanoma, then dies 12 days later. Mia had been very close to her mother. They understood each other, in the same way Mia's sister Alex and their father understand each other. Just as the family is figuring out their new roles, Mia's father has a heart attack, followed by Alex leaving for college.The book is about Mia, her growing up and her healing. Along the way, we see some of her father's story and her sister's story as well. Each of them is an interesting character, but only Mia is truly compelling. Mia meets some very intriguing people along the way, usually through her father's hospital stays. We see all the other characters through Mia's teenage eyes, and it is quite a sight.The author does a wonderful job of showing us Mia's grief without wallowing in it. We see her explosion at school, and her sorting through her memories of her mother. We see her translate her concern for her health as well as her father's into an obsession with healthy eating, and a panic over her own mole. We also see a number of normal teenage moments in a not-so-normal situation. We see Mia's search for a new best friend, and her quest for a boyfriend, which swings between funny, touching, and (at one point) terrifying.This was a book club read for me, and not one I'd have picked up on my own (I hadn't even heard of it). Everyone in the book club enjoyed it. We didn't have a very in-depth discussion. We each pointed out parts that we'd enjoyed, had discussions about some of the characters, and talked about the link between the book and the author's life. The discussion then drifted to other subjects. I think we could have had more of a discussion, and we might have on a different month. I'd evaluate this as an OK book club book, with material worth discussing, but you have to work at finding it.This book was a very quick read, seeming even shorter than its 238 pages. I read it in one sitting, and we all found it moved quickly. The book delivers what it promises, so if the description appeals to you, give the book a try.

[coolmama_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Loved this semi-autobiographical tale of 15 year old Mia Perlman who lost her mother after 12 days of being diagnoised with skin cancer.It was sad, funny, and heartbreakingly true all at the same time.Can't wait for more from Margo Rabb.

[alirambles · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The book begins with the death of Mia's mother and follows Mia, her father, and her older sister, through their recovery over the year-and-a-bit afterwards. Rabb does a remarkable job portraying Mia as a complicated girl--well-meaning and funny but sometimes selfish and horrible in the way that one would expect from a fifteen-year-old in the year after her parent has died. Mia's relationships with her dad, her older sister, Alex, and the other people she spends time with are almost painfully realistic (and I mean that in a good way). See my full review at Worducopia