Hello everyone, I hope you’re all enjoying January so far. My birthday is not too far away and our father’s absence is felt quite deeply. I’m hoping to follow in his footsteps and do as much good as I can. So, in the thread of helping others, this post has three reads that focus on advice letters. Shall we delve further and see what they’re about…
The first title is a young adult read I found during my research into the topic of advice letters. Dear Heartbreak: Young Adult authors on the dark side of love, edited by Heather Demetrios (Henry Holt & Company; 2018) is a powerful collection where well-known young adult authors answer real letters from teens all over the world about the dark side of love; cheating, betrayals, break-ups, dating violence, and loneliness. This book contains a raw, no-holds-barred outpouring of the wisdom these authors have culled from mining their own hearts for the fiction they write. Their responses are autobiographical, unflinching, and filled with love and hope for the anonymous teen letter writers. I found this book a truly exceptional read where the letter writers detail not only their ‘heartbreak’ but at times quite dark themes in their content. I felt that the YA authors dealt with them with both professionalism and heartfelt responses. The list of resources at the back looked like a list that would be helpful for teens going through heartbreaks of any sort. Maybe a better read for older teens and adults!!
The second title is one I found through a YouTube clip to be honest! There was a trailer for it and it got me thinking that it could have been someone’s book. Fast-forward to a couple of months later and I was deep into reading this tenth anniversary edition of Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed (Atlantic Books; 2022) at work. For more than a decade, thousands of people had sought advice from Dear Sugar – the pseudonym of bestselling author Cheryl Strayed. This edition features six new columns and a new preface by her and is filled with her humour, insight, compassion and absolute honesty. I found this a fascinating read!! Filled with advice on life, love, death, grief, and so many more, Strayed weaves her own life’s experience into the column that she authored for so long. At times she’s quite candid and abrupt with what she shares with the letter-writers. Even though it took me a while to get through them all as some had disturbing content, I found it quite a good read and hope the adapted series on Disney plus has done justice to the greatness of her writing!!
My last title is more of a collection of personal letters than that of advice. Letters on Motherhood by Giovanna Fletcher (Michael Joseph; 2020) has Giovanna’s own experiences of motherhood and parenting in a beautiful collection of personal letters recounting tales of her family’s life. This honest, heartwarming and hilarious account will resonate with parents everywhere. I really loved this book and found it really well written. Giovanna Fletcher’s letters to her kids and family were mostly funny, heart-felt, and honest. She writes of what she was feeling and what had happened to begin her letter!! There are a few she’s written to her own body!! The inclusion of the cute and adorable family photos give an extra personal element. It actually gave me the idea of writing letters to my loved ones to read, especially on their birthdays.
So these are the trio of reads I found with letters of advice in them. I found them all inspiring in different ways. I found advice in some myself to live a life that is rich in experience and being true to myself. I hope you manage to find something similar should you find these and have a read of them.
Stay safe and keep reading
Miss Mahee
Miss Mahee's Library of Reads 