REVIEWED BY Micky Barnard
Far from the Tree by Robin BenwayMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
4.5 stars
Robin Benway has once again made me into a snot-ridden, emotional mess. The feelings evoked by FAR FROM THE TREE are mighty and it is unlikely that any reader would be immune to the emotional content of this read.
FAR FROM THE TREE is told from the POV of three siblings, Grace, Maya and Joaquin, each a biological sibling having just found one another. This book starts with a punch, the punch that is the impetus to these brothers and sisters finally meeting. In some ways, Grace, Maya and Joaquin were so different but their burgeoning bond was beautiful to observe.
"Grace was beginning to wonder if her sister was really a humorless robot, but she assumed that even robots knew how to send the winking emoji."
"But then they told me about you, too? And I was like. 'Get. Out.' I mean, its like insta-family, right? Just add water. Like sea monkeys."
Whilst this is about sibling relationships growing, it is also about the families surrounding these characters and each branch of the story line was rich and deep. I think I cried fairly consistently from 80% for a range of reasons. There is a sprinkling of romance in this book, just a sprinkling and honestly it was perfectly pitched and didn't overwhelm the real story here, which was the siblings and their connections.
I need to speak to the diversity in this book. This family had plenty of it but without trying too hard. There was definitely a theme of finding identity but there were so many stumbling blocks in the way. Anyway, I congratulate the author on the richness of character development.
I became a fan of Robin Benway with Emmy & Oliver, but FAR FROM THE TREE has solidified my fandom. These two books have moved me hugely, I'd say that this book was even more of an emotional read.
A copy of this book was provided by the publisher through Edelweiss, in return for a honest review.
Reviewed for Jo&IsaLoveBooks Blog.
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