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You'll Miss Me When I'm Gone
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Eighteen-year-old twins Adina and Tovah have little in common besides their ambitious nature. Viola prodigy Adina yearns to become a soloist—and to convince her music teacher he wants her the way she wants him. Overachiever Tovah awaits her acceptance to Johns Hopkins, the first step on her path toward med school and a career as a surgeon.
But one thing could wreck their c ...more
But one thing could wreck their c ...more
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Hardcover, 384 pages
Published
January 2nd 2018
by Simon Schuster Books for Young Readers
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Start your review of You'll Miss Me When I'm Gone

“Tomorrow , when we turn eighteen, Adi and I will take a genetic test that will tell us whether we’ve inherited
our mother’s Huntington’s disease, the asteroid that knocked our family out of orbit four years ago. The black hole swallowing her up".
Tova and Adina ( Adi), are Fraternal twins.
Adi doesn’t feel ready to take the test. She doesn’t want to know.
Tova does want to know.
Because of a past incident a couple years ago between the sisters - Adi has promised she would take the test with her ...more
our mother’s Huntington’s disease, the asteroid that knocked our family out of orbit four years ago. The black hole swallowing her up".
Tova and Adina ( Adi), are Fraternal twins.
Adi doesn’t feel ready to take the test. She doesn’t want to know.
Tova does want to know.
Because of a past incident a couple years ago between the sisters - Adi has promised she would take the test with her ...more

Mar 18, 2019
Chelsea (chelseadolling reads)
rated it
really liked it
Recommended to Chelsea by:
Julie Zantopoulos
What an intense read, wow. This was SO MUCH darker than I expected it to be. It managed to be completely engrossing while also teaching me so many things I didn't know about both Huntington's Disease and what it is like to be part of a conservative Jewish family. What a great start to the Buzzword Readathon for me!
TW: self harm, depression, suicide ...more
TW: self harm, depression, suicide ...more

4 1/2
I really enjoyed this book. It was about 2 things I don’t read about to often; The Jewish culture & Huntingtons Disease. It also was about family to the core. Even though Adi and Tov are fraternal twins they are not close anymore and barely speak. Throughout the course of this book we see them finally get closer and try to understand each other.
📖
☕️
Huntington’s Disease is horrible and so scary. I felt for this family so very much. It was scary watching one of the twins learn that she will ha ...more
I really enjoyed this book. It was about 2 things I don’t read about to often; The Jewish culture & Huntingtons Disease. It also was about family to the core. Even though Adi and Tov are fraternal twins they are not close anymore and barely speak. Throughout the course of this book we see them finally get closer and try to understand each other.
📖
☕️
Huntington’s Disease is horrible and so scary. I felt for this family so very much. It was scary watching one of the twins learn that she will ha ...more

Update on 1/2/18: YOU'LL MISS ME WHEN I'M GONE is officially out in the world today!!
Update on 11/14/17: Now that advance copies are out in the world, I want to note that this book deals with heavy issues that aren't evident from the description. Adding a TW here for self-harm and suicidal ideation. If you would like specific page numbers or further information, please let me know, and I'm happy to provide that. You can contact me through my website: http://www.rachelsolomonbooks.com/con....
Up ...more
Update on 11/14/17: Now that advance copies are out in the world, I want to note that this book deals with heavy issues that aren't evident from the description. Adding a TW here for self-harm and suicidal ideation. If you would like specific page numbers or further information, please let me know, and I'm happy to provide that. You can contact me through my website: http://www.rachelsolomonbooks.com/con....
Up ...more

“Sonatas and concertos tell stories. They make you feel every possible emotion, sometimes all within a single piece…they are joy and tragedy and fear and hate and love. They are everything I never say out loud.”
There are a lot of truly lovely and meaningful quotes I could have used from this book to start my review of it, but the above best sums up this reading experience. Adina and Tovah’s story is full of joy and tragedy and fear and hate and love.
I have two sisters, and Adina and Tovah’s ...more

Posted at Shelf Inflicted
After reading the heartbreaking and thought-provoking Inside the O'Briens, I went in search of more fiction that deals with Huntington’s disease.
This is the story of fraternal twin sisters Adina and Tovah, two teenagers who have gradually grown apart.
Can one enjoy a book and at the same time be glad it’s over? Perhaps I’m just too old to read about 18-year-olds with their volatile emotions, their self-centeredness, and their never-ending drama. Add to this boiling cau ...more
After reading the heartbreaking and thought-provoking Inside the O'Briens, I went in search of more fiction that deals with Huntington’s disease.
This is the story of fraternal twin sisters Adina and Tovah, two teenagers who have gradually grown apart.
Can one enjoy a book and at the same time be glad it’s over? Perhaps I’m just too old to read about 18-year-olds with their volatile emotions, their self-centeredness, and their never-ending drama. Add to this boiling cau ...more

Dec 27, 2017
Jasmine
rated it
it was amazing
Recommends it for:
Everyone. Diverse readers especially. Trigger Warnings.
***Actual rating: 5/5 Tov Stars***
It’s official! You’ll Miss Me When I’m Gone just drew my reading year of 2017 to a close perfectly. Wow, I don’t even know where to begin with this splendid piece of writing by the lovely Rachel. This book is ...more
The thin ivory candles in the middle of the table are a third their original height. Jews are not to extinguish them; we are supposed to let them burn on their own instead. That’s what I have been taught.
Tonight I lean over and blow them out.
It’s official! You’ll Miss Me When I’m Gone just drew my reading year of 2017 to a close perfectly. Wow, I don’t even know where to begin with this splendid piece of writing by the lovely Rachel. This book is ...more

Adina and Tovah Seigel may be twins but they were entirely different in every sense possible. The only thing that they have in common was the hate and jealousy they felt for each other.
Adina is a viola prodigy who devoted her whole life in it. She took her music very seriously and was not afraid to take the risk, being comfortable with her own skin or bringing herself with confidence and pride. She also had private lessons with her Indian music teacher, Arjun and her passion for becoming a soloi ...more
Adina is a viola prodigy who devoted her whole life in it. She took her music very seriously and was not afraid to take the risk, being comfortable with her own skin or bringing herself with confidence and pride. She also had private lessons with her Indian music teacher, Arjun and her passion for becoming a soloi ...more

Wow, this was a hard book to read, but really well written. Chronic illness and SERIOUS chronic illness is an issue that not enough books touch on, or often when they do, it’s often with a very light hand. I really appreciated the way author Rachel Lynn Solomon handled this heartbreaking look at the effects of Huntington’s disease, and the decision by two sisters to be tested after watching their mother slowly get worse over the course of four years since her diagnosis.
Tava and Adira are very d ...more
Tava and Adira are very d ...more

A complex, nuanced book with a sibling story at its heart that's unlike anything I've read before. Rachel Solomon knocks it out of the park with this debut.
...more

This was such a haunting read.
I can’t give this anything less than 5 stars because I devoured it. I read it in one day, and by the end of it I was emotionally drained. This story broke my heart over and over again. I had to take little breaks between chapters to just catch up on my thoughts.
This follows two estranged sisters, who are complete opposites. One artistic and outgoing, and the other academic and an introvert. After their 18th birthday, they are tested for Huntington’s, which runs in ...more
I can’t give this anything less than 5 stars because I devoured it. I read it in one day, and by the end of it I was emotionally drained. This story broke my heart over and over again. I had to take little breaks between chapters to just catch up on my thoughts.
This follows two estranged sisters, who are complete opposites. One artistic and outgoing, and the other academic and an introvert. After their 18th birthday, they are tested for Huntington’s, which runs in ...more

Oh, this was really, really good. And yeah, I'm excited to see more Jewish rep in YA that isn't Holocaust-related, but as a sister book, as a coming-of-age, as a book about teens looking to the future, as a book about examining your own worth through other's eyes, as a book about familial relationships on the whole...yeah, this is good.
...more

This is a heavy hitter. I knew it was going to be a tough read from the synopsis but I didn’t realize how hard. This book takes some dark turns. Where I was expecting it to turn into a wholesome family bonding, coming of age, dealing with tough times and grief with loved ones, it sidestepped. Both these sisters are overly ambitious which also means they are overly critical of themselves and each other. While I don’t think either girl is particularly likable, you are still rooting for them even i
...more

You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight
Gah, where do I even start, friends? So a lot of you know that I have been slumping, hard. For like, many months. And no book was able to really and truly "wow" me. Well, that is until I read You'll Miss Me When I'm Gone. Yep, Rachel Lynn Solomon, with her debut, no less, managed to break a slump that lasted the better part of a year. That is how good this book is. And now I am going to ...more
Gah, where do I even start, friends? So a lot of you know that I have been slumping, hard. For like, many months. And no book was able to really and truly "wow" me. Well, that is until I read You'll Miss Me When I'm Gone. Yep, Rachel Lynn Solomon, with her debut, no less, managed to break a slump that lasted the better part of a year. That is how good this book is. And now I am going to ...more

Before I start reviewing this book, I want to tell you that You'll Miss Me When I'm Gone by Rachel Lynn Solomon is probably my favourite book of the year. It's one of the most powerful reads of mine, it was raw, it made me feel things. It was absolutely perfect and when it comes out in January, please make sure you read it because you have no idea what you're losing on.
"I thought I could force him to love me. Relationships are not about control, though, and perhaps that is why I have never had ...more
"I thought I could force him to love me. Relationships are not about control, though, and perhaps that is why I have never had ...more

Oooooh this is a really good debut, you guys. I love all the themes about family, sisterhood, friendship, love as well as the darker things that are happening (TW) like depression and life-decisions.
Can we just take a moment and relish in the glory of this book? Because it's fantastic.
There are so many things I can rave about this book, and the best place to start is with the characters, who are the core of the story.
I loved reading about them, and although at times I wasn't too keen on them (I ...more
Can we just take a moment and relish in the glory of this book? Because it's fantastic.
There are so many things I can rave about this book, and the best place to start is with the characters, who are the core of the story.
I loved reading about them, and although at times I wasn't too keen on them (I ...more

Wow! Just wow! Can I leave my review at that? Because honestly, I don’t feel like any review I write for You’ll Miss Me When I’m Gone is going to do the book any justice. It’s such a breath-taking story, and it’s one that made me feel all the emotions. This might only be Rachel Lynn Solomon’s debut, but judging from this piece of work, she’s here to slay.
This was such an emotional story, and not one that was easy to get through. I knew I had to mentally prepare myself for the waterworks that was ...more

Edit: Dec 2 2016: This book just keeps getting better. OMG <3.
***
THIS IS MY CRIT PARTNER'S AMAZING DEBUT!!!!!!!!!
I have read many many drafts of this beautiful, important book. YOU'LL MISS ME WHEN I'M GONE is about two sisters, Adina (Adi) and Tovah (#TEAMTOVAH!!!), as they deal with their mother's Huntington's disease, college applications, romance/sex/love, being Jewish and what the heck that means (and if G-d even hears us when we're praying/upset/etc.), and what living - truly living - means ...more
***
THIS IS MY CRIT PARTNER'S AMAZING DEBUT!!!!!!!!!
I have read many many drafts of this beautiful, important book. YOU'LL MISS ME WHEN I'M GONE is about two sisters, Adina (Adi) and Tovah (#TEAMTOVAH!!!), as they deal with their mother's Huntington's disease, college applications, romance/sex/love, being Jewish and what the heck that means (and if G-d even hears us when we're praying/upset/etc.), and what living - truly living - means ...more

I read an early draft of this beautiful, haunting book as a sensitivity reader.
As the member of a family battered by Huntington's Disease, I believe with all my heart that this is an important book that everyone should read. It's conversely beautiful and tragic, and not in the ways you might think. The author paints the nuances of this disease with a deft and empathetic hand. Devastating realities are balanced by the complicated (but redeeming) love of sisters.
The Jewish culture presented is l ...more
As the member of a family battered by Huntington's Disease, I believe with all my heart that this is an important book that everyone should read. It's conversely beautiful and tragic, and not in the ways you might think. The author paints the nuances of this disease with a deft and empathetic hand. Devastating realities are balanced by the complicated (but redeeming) love of sisters.
The Jewish culture presented is l ...more

This is the first book that I've read that had a heavy focus on the Jewish faith, practices, traditions, and language and it was wonderful! It was diverse not just in religious and cultural ways but also in the racial differences of love interests and physical illness rep (Huntington) as well. I was impressed by how well all the different topics merged into a well-told, cohesive, and touching story.
Tovah and Adina were complex and complete characters and I loved their interaction with their pee ...more
Tovah and Adina were complex and complete characters and I loved their interaction with their pee ...more

I'm speechless. Preorder this beautiful, haunting book, please.
...more

Fraternal twins await test results to see if either has inherited Huntington Disease from their mother, who is slowly losing her battle with the illness. Tovah plans for medical school while Adina, a viola prodigy, wants to study music. When one tests positive and the other negative, the rift between the sisters becomes a chasm.
I’ve known a few people with Huntington Disease which, in my opinion, is second to ALS in diseases I most fear. 100% of the people with the gene develop the illness and c ...more
I’ve known a few people with Huntington Disease which, in my opinion, is second to ALS in diseases I most fear. 100% of the people with the gene develop the illness and c ...more

“You can spend lifetimes searching tragedies for reasons why.”
This was such a great human story. Everything felt so real and earnest. We follow estranged twin sisters, Adina and Tovah, as their lives are changed after one of them tests positive for Huntington's Disease - the same disease that has caused their mom so much pain. Now each girl must reconcile their futures, their faith, and their relationships in the face of this new information.
I really liked that Adinah and Tocah were just so huma ...more
This was such a great human story. Everything felt so real and earnest. We follow estranged twin sisters, Adina and Tovah, as their lives are changed after one of them tests positive for Huntington's Disease - the same disease that has caused their mom so much pain. Now each girl must reconcile their futures, their faith, and their relationships in the face of this new information.
I really liked that Adinah and Tocah were just so huma ...more

I don't have the words or the time to describe how I feel. RTC
So ... for some reason, I have the overwhelming urge to read this book. I can't wait to meet Tovah, and Adina and Arjun, and see all the Seattle things, and have my heart broken. But like there is a conversation in the first chapter that I have legit had with my best friend while walking around in Capitol Hill. ...more
So ... for some reason, I have the overwhelming urge to read this book. I can't wait to meet Tovah, and Adina and Arjun, and see all the Seattle things, and have my heart broken. But like there is a conversation in the first chapter that I have legit had with my best friend while walking around in Capitol Hill. ...more

You’ll Miss Me When I’m Gone is a heartbreaking, poignantly written tale that touches familial relationships, Jewish culture and religious practices, and the exhilarating thrill of first loves, while simultaneously addressing physical illnesses and mental health. It should be noted, however, that the novel also contains heavy content such as self-harm and suicidal ideation. A trigger warning has been provided by the author herself.
I picked up You’ll Miss Me When I’m Gone as my first read of 2018 ...more
I picked up You’ll Miss Me When I’m Gone as my first read of 2018 ...more

i love this cover so much.

Content warnings: suicidal ideation, self-harm, chronic illness
I barely have words for how much I adore YOU'LL MISS ME WHEN I'M GONE, but, I shall try my best.
I didn't hate Adina. She might frustrate and infuriate me, embarrass and humiliate me, but I didn't hate her. I never could.
But tonight I came close.
EXAMINING SISTER RELATIONSHIPS
The relationship between reserved, grunge and biology-obsessed Tovah and headstrong viola prodigy Adina is unlike any other sibling relationship I've seen in YA. ...more
I barely have words for how much I adore YOU'LL MISS ME WHEN I'M GONE, but, I shall try my best.
I didn't hate Adina. She might frustrate and infuriate me, embarrass and humiliate me, but I didn't hate her. I never could.
But tonight I came close.
EXAMINING SISTER RELATIONSHIPS
The relationship between reserved, grunge and biology-obsessed Tovah and headstrong viola prodigy Adina is unlike any other sibling relationship I've seen in YA. ...more

This was fantastic. At first glance, Adina and Tovah are what critics of YA would call 'unlikeable protagonists.' But for me, that's code for 'well-developed and nuanced characters who are written unapologetically, with consideration for the full spectrum of emotions.' I loved the information about Judaism and their passions for viola and science.
...more

“It's easy to be inclusive, and yet most people just don't care.”
I read this book a few weeks ago and had a lot to say, but I'm not sure if I will remember everything I wanted to talk about. To be honest, I was pretty cynical because I don't know.... I expected it to be an exaggerated story on something serious, but thank goodness I was wrong. It was beautiful and a pleasant read.
“Because it is funny, almost, that “positive” usually means something good.”
Adina and Tovah are fraternal twi ...more
I read this book a few weeks ago and had a lot to say, but I'm not sure if I will remember everything I wanted to talk about. To be honest, I was pretty cynical because I don't know.... I expected it to be an exaggerated story on something serious, but thank goodness I was wrong. It was beautiful and a pleasant read.
“Because it is funny, almost, that “positive” usually means something good.”
Adina and Tovah are fraternal twi ...more

REVIEW IS ALSO ON MY BLOG - GO HERE TO SEE IT
M I N I R E V I E W
You’ll Miss Me When I’m Gone wasn’t a bad book at all, it just wasn’t the book for me. This book should receive every bit of praise it is receiving. It deserves it. Rachel Lynn Solomon writes a stunning debut novel that tackles many hard-hitting topics, like the fact sisters aren’t always close and the bond shared can easily be broken. As well as learning you have a gene that will slowly take away your ability for life.
My problems w ...more
M I N I R E V I E W
You’ll Miss Me When I’m Gone wasn’t a bad book at all, it just wasn’t the book for me. This book should receive every bit of praise it is receiving. It deserves it. Rachel Lynn Solomon writes a stunning debut novel that tackles many hard-hitting topics, like the fact sisters aren’t always close and the bond shared can easily be broken. As well as learning you have a gene that will slowly take away your ability for life.
My problems w ...more
topics | posts | views | last activity | |
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Young Adult Conte...: #15 You'll Miss Me When I'm Gone by Rachel Lynn Solomon | 1 | 12 | Apr 09, 2018 01:53PM | |
YA Buddy Readers'...: You'll Miss Me When I'm Gone by Rachel Lynn Solomon - Starting February 24th 2018 | 5 | 25 | Feb 24, 2018 10:01PM |
Rachel Lynn Solomon writes, tap dances, and collects lipstick in Seattle, Washington. Her romance and YA novels include The Ex Talk, Today Tonight Tomorrow, and We Can't Keep Meeting Like This (6/1/21). Once she helped set a Guinness World Record for the most natural redheads in one place.
Her short story "Aftershocks" appears in the anthology It's a Whole Spiel: Love, Latkes, and Other Jewish Stor ...more
Her short story "Aftershocks" appears in the anthology It's a Whole Spiel: Love, Latkes, and Other Jewish Stor ...more
Articles featuring this book
Rachel Lynn Solomon is best known to her fans for writing heartfelt contemporary YA novels like 2020's Today Tonight Tomorrow and her 2018...
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“It's easy to be inclusive, and yet most people just don't care.”
—
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“Am I still ambitious if I've failed?”
—
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