Basically the story is one big long letter written by the narrator, a girl named Min to her former boyfriend (and total tool) Ed. The letter supposedly accompanies a box wherein are housed a number of objects collected from the time the two were dating. In lieu of these objects the book is supplied with some very lovely illustrations of each, drawn by Maira Kalman. The presentation is unconventional and pleasing, and drew me into the story. Each chapter is accompanied by a relevant illustration, and the pictures essentially function as titles to the chapters.
The writing is quite good. I've read plenty of the Lemony Snickett books, and I can confidently say that this is nothing like them. In fact, I wouldn't have even guessed that the book was written by a British guy. It feels very American, and very young adult. It's clear that Handler has a really strong ability to adjust his writing for a particular audience and style, and I hope he continues publishing excellent stuff in several genres. The narrative style of the book is rather unconventional. It's epistolatory, but one-sided. There's no actual exchange taking place. The narration is both first person and second person, which occasionally puts the reader in the role of the jerk ex-boyfriend. I rather liked that little trick, and I thought it was an effective way to engage the reader, and also to help the reader think about the issues complexly. I occasionally found myself trying to justify the actions of the ex-boyfriend, even though the guy was a major douche. I generally just love narrative trickery, though, so I enjoyed the style of the book.
I like that this book breaks with the general conventions of YA novels. Most YA books could be titled Why We Got Together, since they invariably involve love and romance at some level, and usually end when the two unlikely characters finally confess their love for each other! While this book has a bit of the same stuff, it only comprises a few chapters. Even these chapters aren't exactly gratifying, because the promise of a breakup looms over the entire book. This, in my opinion, is a very good thing. Too often YA lit seems to suggest that the solution to all of life's problems is a romantic relationship, or at least that once your problems are solved there will be some romance waiting for you. Anyone who is actually a human being realizes that this line of thinking is totally wrong. Life doesn't reward us with love at the end of every trial. In fact, often love itself is the trial. Handler approaches romance from this angle, and makes the inevitable breakup a moment of freedom, relief, and clarity. Why We Broke Up has joined Eleanor and Park as one of the only YA books that looks at romance realistically, making it a crucial addition to the body of YA lit. It reminds me of one of my favorite quotes from Margaret Atwood: "Love blurs your vision; but after it recedes, you can see more clearly than ever. It's like the tide going out, revealing whatever's been thrown away and sunk: broken bottles, old gloves, rusting pop cans, nibbled fishbodies, bones. This is the kind of thing you see if you sit in the darkness with open eyes, not knowing the future."
My favorite element of the book was the friendship between Min and her best friend Al. Although it is a boy/girl relationship, there's no romance there. It's so refreshing to read about a healthy male/female friendship that doesn't end in a makeout session. In fact, I think this book has possibly the most accurate and moving depiction of true friendship of any book I've yet read. It reminded me of some of my closest friendships, and therefore really resonated with me. It was a fairly small part of the story, but was vitally important to the overall themes of the book.
A few other quick notes. The novel is chock full of film references, and will therefore likely appeal to film fans (Min dreams of being a director, and often looks at her life as if it were a film). However, the one catch is that all the films being referenced are completely fake. This isn't a problem, though. Once I quit opening my IMDB app every time a film was referenced, I just began enjoying the descriptions of all these "classic" films. I think it was a genius move using fake films, because Handler could describe anything, make it as relevant to the novel as necessary, and he never had to tick off any diehard fans of old cinema in the process by misrepresenting well-loved films. Although the films referenced are fictional, the descriptions are true to the feel of old movies, and any film buff should enjoy the read regardless of the erroneous nature of the cinematic allusions.
Overall I enjoyed this book. It's longer than most YA lit, feels a bit more grownup, is a bit less sappy, and contains a healthy blend of the real and the whimsical. It's definitely worth reading if you're into YA lit.
Score: 8/10
Read this book if: You like YA lit but are a bit sick of the standard fare.
Don't read this book if: You are looking for some really deep literature, or something really light and fluffy. This book is neither, which is part of what makes it so unique and lovely.
P.S. While uploading the cover illustration I noticed that little silver seal signifying a Printz Honor Book. That puts the novel in the esteemed company of novels such as Looking for Alaska, The Book Thief, and The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks. I certainly feel the award was well-deserved!
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