The Way Back from Broken by Amber J. Keyser

The Way Back from Broken Reviews

• 
  Sandie, Teen Lit Rocks

  Powerful book about a kind of grief that's rarely explored in YA: the loss of an infant/newborn sibling (or child).
• 
  Kathleen Dixon

  Many years ago someone I know well gave birth to a child prematurely. The baby died two days later. I was out of the country at the time, and by the time I returned they had moved away. And we never ever talked about it. I rarely even remember it, but reading this book reminded me.
  
  Keyser has tackled this teen novel, based on child death, beautifully. Through the eyes of 15-year-old Rakmen we look at different ways that parents and a child's siblings grieve, including feelings of guilt and anger. Along with this is the discomfort felt with another younger kid, with a teacher stepping outside her usual role, and with parents clearly not processing the grief together. I found Rakmen's narrative excellent - a great insight into the mind of a teenager.
  
  I also loved the scenes in the Canadian wilderness. Keyser's descriptions, through Rakmen's observations, really brought it to life for me. She made the journeying by canoe particularly vivid.
  
  I'm now looking to see what else this fairly new author has written.
• 
  Drew

  Read this book in one straight sitting, with occasional stops to breathe; it's that engaging.
  
  So vivid and real. Touching and tender, without an ounce of saccharine. A refreshingly honest perspective on loss and survival in all its complexity.
• 
  Rupali

  DNF.
• 
  John Clark

  Deep grief often kicks logic and responsibility to the curb, dragging relationships and awareness of the effect on family members with it. When Rakmen Cannon's baby sister died in his arms, so did the life he'd come to take for granted. Even though it wasn't his fault because Dora had a defective heart, that hasn't quelled the guilt. Things are even worse for his parents because Dad is an RN and war veteran who is used to saving lives and hiding feelings, while mom can't get through hers. It's tearing the family apart as well as contributing to Rakmen's failure at school.
  As the family situation worsens, his mother drags him to Promise House where she attends a grief support group and he's banished to the art therapy room in the basement. Despite having crawled deep into his own shell, Rakmen recognizes the mutual sense of loss everyone in the group shares. He particularly relates to Molly whose parents have reacted to their loss by tightening her life until it resembles a prison.
  When he hangs back before going downstairs one evening, he's the one who answers the door to let a couple latecomers in. It is his teacher, Mrs Tatlas and her ten year old daughter Jacey. The little girl attaches herself to him almost immediately and thus begins a double journey for the two of them and her mother, one physical, the other emotional.
  When Jacey makes a frantic late night call after her mother loses it completely, it becomes clear to Rakmen's mother that the girl sees her son as the most reliable and safe person aside from her own mom, maybe even more so. Even though Rakmen resents the way Jacey pulls his feelings out, he also starts to understand just how much their losses are alike. Jacey's baby brother was stillborn and she had invested a lot of emotional energy into preparing the be the best possible sister, all for naught.
  When Jacey's mom decides that a trip to the remote Canadian camp where she spent girlhood summers might help the healing process, she invites Rakmen to come along. Despite kicking and screaming mentally about his summer being hijacked, he goes.
  The camp is a disaster, but what happens after they arrive is life-changing in unexpected ways. The experience is dangerous, scary, beautiful and transforming. The author has taken pieces of her personal experiences and crafted a fabulous story about how grieving effects everyone and its effects cannot be predicted. This is an emotional and riveting story. Teens and tweens who like feeling stories, adventure or who have experienced sibling loss will really relate to the story. This is an excellent book for all school and public libraries to own.
• 
  Mary Farrell

  I won a copy of this book through a blog contest and I'm really glad I did. I was immediately hooked by the title and couldn't wait to read it.
  
  I highly recommend this read because it offers something different than the usual YA fare. One of the things I enjoy most about books is when the relationships between characters are complex and unique and the two people have a profound impact on each other. In this book the main character is a teenage boy, but the most important secondary character is a young girl maybe 10 yrs old. Like I said, not your usual teenage read, yet it is very powerful.
  
  I also enjoyed the wilderness aspect to the story, and the way it showed how nature can be a healing force. I haven't mentioned the main aspect of the book which is grief over the death of a sibling, as I'm sure most of the reviews will comment on that part of the plot, and I don't feel qualified to.
• 
  Stephanie A.

  A moving portrait of how young people cope with not just their own but their parents' grief over the loss of a younger sibling, rather unlike anything I've seen before, set largely in the tranquil wilderness of Middle of Nowhere Canada.
  
  Maybe the most unique thing about it was the mix of characters: a 10-year-old latches onto a teenage boy in their therapy group and sees him as her new best friend/role model/hero. It turns out that she is his biology teacher's daughter, which leads to an offer for him to spend the summer with them at a remote cabin, his role somewhere between a built-in babysitter and a troubled kid in his own right who could use some time away from his squabbling parents.
  
  While things certainly happen, sometimes scary things, the best word I can think of for this book is "quiet." Not boring, not slow. Just the introspective, contemplative reflection required for healing.
• 
  LeeAnn

  4.5 stars. I seem to have read a number of books this year that tackled the theme of loss and grief. And all of them have been surprisingly different--but then, all of us deal with loss and grief differently. Just as each of the characters in this story do. Anger, curiosity, despair, blame, regret, avoidance. These are just some of the emotions that can leach away at your life when you have been broken by the loss of a loved one. For 15 yo Rakmen and 10 yo Jacey, Keyser skillfully paralleled their emotional survival, their way back, with a true to life wilderness survival adventure. Interwoven touches of humor and the sibling-like snarking between Rakmen and Jacey balanced the heavier moments. A well-done debut I highly recommend.
• 
  Laurène Poret

  Yes.
  
  It's incredible to see how big an impact a small book can have. How poignant a few words can be.
  I loved The Way Back From Broken. I loved the title and I love it even more now.
  This is a book for everyone to read.
• 
  Amy Prosenjak

  Beautiful language and metaphors about heart wrenching grief...And an Oregon Book Awards finalist!
• 
  BookWorm

  3.5 stars
• 
  Sandy

  This wasn’t one of those amazing reads that captured my attention from page one. Actually as I began reading it, I couldn’t figure out why I chose this book to begin with as the beginning was slow and depressing, more depressing than I normally like and believe me, I like down-and-out novels. There had to be a reason why I chose this novel and as I dug deeper into it, I figured it out. The true essence of the novel’s activities occurs in the last third of the book, as two of the main characters make major discoveries in their lives. Throughout the story, the characters faced many emotions as they come to terms with the struggles that life throws at them. Trying to face these struggles alone, they realize that they are not alone and that working together they are stronger.
  
  Rakman attend support group with his mother. The support group is for individuals who have lost a loved one. The children assembled in the basement, trying to drown out the cries from their mothers above. Jacey and her mother just joined, her mother’s sorrow consumes her, and Jacey has taken to Rakman, literally following him around like a dog. She’s younger than Rakman and I visualize that she saw in Rakman a big brother, someone she could look up to. The sorrow is thick inside this building as Rakman tries to keep the noise level high in the basement to keep the cries from hitting the children’s ears. Rakman can’t find a job for the summer but Jacey’s mother wants to take a trip to Canada to clear her head and Jacey wants Rakman to go. Rakman’s parents like the idea for they need some time alone to come to terms over their own loss. Rakman begs not to go for there are things here at home he will miss and two months away is a long time. His parents win out and they make the trip sounds wonderful but when they arrive at Jacey’s uncle’s cabin, the sight is not what they had imagined. Cleaning is superficial and what lies beneath takes its toll overtime. It becomes an adventure for the three of them, au large. For me, the story really began here as the three of them began the real journey. Testing their strengths and finding out who they really were. Stepping on toes and pushing aside their limitations. It was an okay story, I would take it or leave it.
  
• 
  Darlene

  Yay! I won this book in a contest by Cidney Swanson. Here is her page:
  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show...
  
  I think I would have finished this book a long time ago had it been in Kindle format. But this way I will be able to share not only the signed book but the swag of postcards that came with it. I'll add the BookCrossing BCID at the bottom of this review.
  
  This book addresses the children of families that have lost babies, either pre or post birth. It may seem silly that we leave the siblings out of the grieving process for these situations but this shows the depth that kids of all ages feel for their departed loved ones. And though 'lost infants' is the focus of the mourning process, and though the book is aimed at children or young adults, I think this might be a great book for other ages and other types of losses.
  
  With the topic that is so sad and frustrating for the young characters in the book, I found the book slow for me. But for those whose eyes can handle the font, this might read faster. Still, I felt the author said what needed to be said for the reader, and the characters. And please don't give up if it doesn't move along fast enough. It will pick up toward the end and you will be so happy that you stayed with it.
  
  I finished reading the book a couple days ago. I just didn't want to let go of the characters or adventure that they find themselves a part of. I miss all of it. I miss them. I want to know more of what happens next. I don't know if the author plans a sequel. The reader isn't left on any cliff. But I would love to see the story continue.
  
  Congratulations, Amber J. Keyser, on a book well done and on a subject matter not covered very often.
  
  Here is the BCID: 118-13963555
• 
  Kim Piddington

  Fifteen-year-old Rakman and his family are devastated when his infant sister, Dora, dies in his arms. Everyone processes the death differently. While his father, a nurse, uses alcohol and avoidance, Rakman and his mother attend therapy sessions at Promise House. But attending the support group, talking, and writing in his journal doesn’t change the way Rakman feels: guilty. His grades plummet and after a brawl that leaves him bloodied and with a broken rib, his parents decide to ship him off on “vacation” with a ten-year-old girl and her mother—Rakman’s high school science teacher, Mrs. Tatlas, who is grieving her still born son. The camping trip goes from bad, an infestation of mice, to worse, when the plumbing explodes and floods the cabin. Mrs. Tatlas snaps and drags the two children Au large through the Canadian wilderness.
  
  Keyser’s debut novel is an emotional journey through the grieving process, seen from a variety of perspectives. Rakman, and his side-kick, Jacey, are likable protagonists who struggle to survive the extreme mental and physical challenges thrown in their paths
  
• 
  Ellie

  I was a little concerned about the potential darkness of this book, which centers on youth in a grief group. Add to that the fact that the main characters lost young siblings, and it could be easy to make this an overly tragic book. I was impressed, though, but the way that Keyser addressed the grief felt by the siblings so truthfully that it never seems cliche or overdone. The emotions are true, and that truthfulness leads the entire story. I found this to be an immensely powerful book that didn't try too hard, which I think is a true accomplishment considering the subject nature. This is a book that touched me, and I bet it would be even more powerful if read by someone currently experiencing loss. I will recommend this book to any teens looking for a more serious read.
  
  I received a galley of this book through Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.
• 
  Heather Brown

  Rakmen Cannon and Jayce Tatlas have something in common. Their families both lost an infant child and haven't been able to deal with the losses. Jayce is the 10 year old daughter of Rakmen's teacher at high school. Their families decide that it would be a great idea for Rakmen, Jayce, and Mrs. Tatlas to spend 8 weeks in the Canadian wilderness so that Rakmen's parents can work on their marriage and so that someone can watch Jayce if Mrs Tatlas falls apart. What no one expects is for the struggle against nature to help them all in their struggle to understand loss.
  The Way Back from Broken is well-written and thought provoking, without being sappy. Rakmen is someone we can all relate to in his attempts to hold everything together even though he is falling apart.
  Thanks a bunch to Netgalley for the advance copy!
• 
  Brie

  I had the privilege of reading this jewel. My heart still aches. These characters find themselves in an unenviable club of surviving siblings and more than a few times I had to rest the book on my lap and pause because the emotions were so strong, so real. It's a topic that's rarely addressed and I commend the author for going there and bringing everything to the page. Amber Keyser doesn't just validate Rakmen's emotions, they are honored.
  
  Will be recommending this book until the end of time. A must read.
• 
  Angela Critics

  This book wasn't on my radar. But when I was looking through new arrivals at the library, I was quickly caught by Rakmen's voice and immediately put a hold on it. The rest of the book did not disappoint. It is a story about grief and trying to continue living after losing a family member. It's also a survival story set in the Canadian wilderness.
  
  This book didn't bring me to tears, but did leave me emotionally wrung out. There is enough adventure to help break up the mood.
  
  4.5 stars - maybe I should have rounded up.
• 
  Jenni V.

  The premise to get everyone into this situation was eye-rollingly unbelievable but the story is pretty good if you can let it go. The ending came together in a rushed way but it's forgivable since it's for a younger audience.
  
  Quote from the Book
  "He would go.
  Not because Jacey needed him or because Leah did or because his mother wanted to believe he was weaving her a goddamn basket at summer camp. But because all around him, houses were collapsing, and maybe it was better to be where there were no houses at all."
  
  Find all my reviews at:
  http://readingatrandom.blogspot.com
• 
  Nidia Rodriguez

  Rakmen Cannon makes his weekly visit to Promise House just like all of the other grieving families. Rakmen's baby sister Dora died in his arms. He knows that the odds of his parents staying together after losing a child are slim. Now his mother has decided that camping in the woods with his teacher and her daughter who are also grieving the loss of a baby will be good for him. Rakmen's experiences on this camping trip will either make or break him.