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Year They Fell
When a horrible tragedy unites five very different high school seniors, they discover the worst moment of your life can help determine who you really are in the powerful YA novel, The Year They Fell .
Josie, Jack, Archie, Harrison, and Dayana were inseparable as preschoolers. But that was before high school, before parties and football and getting into the right college. Now, as senior year approaches, they're basically strangers to each other.
Until they’re pulled back together when their parents die in a plane crash. These former friends are suddenly on their own. And they’re the only people who can really understand how that feels.
To survive, the group must face the issues that drove them apart, reveal secrets they’ve kept since childhood, and discover who they’re meant to be. And in the face of public scrutiny, they’ll confront mysteries their parents left behind―betrayals that threaten to break the friendships apart again.
A new family is forged in this heartbreaking, funny, and surprising book from award-winning storyteller David Kreizman. It's a deeply felt, complex journey into adulthood, exploring issues of grief, sexual assault, racism, and trauma.
An Imprint Book
“Teen drama abounds in this story about loss and love.” ― Kirkus Reviews
“Readers will find the characters relatable as they navigate the challenging time from senior year into adulthood following tragedy.” ― School Library Journal
Josie, Jack, Archie, Harrison, and Dayana were inseparable as preschoolers. But that was before high school, before parties and football and getting into the right college. Now, as senior year approaches, they're basically strangers to each other.
Until they’re pulled back together when their parents die in a plane crash. These former friends are suddenly on their own. And they’re the only people who can really understand how that feels.
To survive, the group must face the issues that drove them apart, reveal secrets they’ve kept since childhood, and discover who they’re meant to be. And in the face of public scrutiny, they’ll confront mysteries their parents left behind―betrayals that threaten to break the friendships apart again.
A new family is forged in this heartbreaking, funny, and surprising book from award-winning storyteller David Kreizman. It's a deeply felt, complex journey into adulthood, exploring issues of grief, sexual assault, racism, and trauma.
An Imprint Book
“Teen drama abounds in this story about loss and love.” ― Kirkus Reviews
“Readers will find the characters relatable as they navigate the challenging time from senior year into adulthood following tragedy.” ― School Library Journal
384 pages, Paperback
First published July 30, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 113 reviews
July 29, 2019
RTC
Thank you to Edelweiss and Macmillan for the ARC provided in exchange for an honest opinion.
Thank you to Edelweiss and Macmillan for the ARC provided in exchange for an honest opinion.
March 27, 2019
5 Unforgettable Stars!!
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
5 friends inseparable as preschoolers, before high school and parties and football. Now seniors in high school, they are all strangers to each other. Tragedy strikes and their parents die in a plane crash- left alone, these 5 only have each other to relate to and lean on.
Josie, Jack, Archie, Harrison, and Dayana AKA- the "Sunnies" have a lot to figure out since being out of each others lives for so long. They have to face what split them apart in the first place. Their answers may just be what they need to forge a new family.
This book was so amazing. The depth of the characters was phenomenal. Each one was so unique and different from the other. We get to know them on a very personal level so much to the point, you actually feel like you know these characters in real life. The writing was a breath of fresh air and just so on point with the subject matter.
This is a book about friendship and love, its heartbreaking and funny all at the same time. The author did such a fantastic job bringing these characters to life. You will surely be able to relate to at least one of the characters in the book. You will get lost in the pages, laugh and cry but its all worth it!!
Overall I totally loved this one and really hope that someone picks it up and makes it into a movie. Its just so good I highly recommend it !!
Thank you to netgalley for this arc. Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
5 friends inseparable as preschoolers, before high school and parties and football. Now seniors in high school, they are all strangers to each other. Tragedy strikes and their parents die in a plane crash- left alone, these 5 only have each other to relate to and lean on.
Josie, Jack, Archie, Harrison, and Dayana AKA- the "Sunnies" have a lot to figure out since being out of each others lives for so long. They have to face what split them apart in the first place. Their answers may just be what they need to forge a new family.
This book was so amazing. The depth of the characters was phenomenal. Each one was so unique and different from the other. We get to know them on a very personal level so much to the point, you actually feel like you know these characters in real life. The writing was a breath of fresh air and just so on point with the subject matter.
This is a book about friendship and love, its heartbreaking and funny all at the same time. The author did such a fantastic job bringing these characters to life. You will surely be able to relate to at least one of the characters in the book. You will get lost in the pages, laugh and cry but its all worth it!!
Overall I totally loved this one and really hope that someone picks it up and makes it into a movie. Its just so good I highly recommend it !!
Thank you to netgalley for this arc. Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
July 30, 2019
THE YEAR THEY FELL is about the people we are when we stop pretending to be the people we think we’re supposed to be.
The rebel. The jock. The popular girl. The artist. The anxious overachiever. Five preschool friends grow apart by senior year in high school, though their parents remain friends. Four of their parents die in a plane crash on an annual trip bringing the “Sunnies” back together.
THE YEAR THEY FELL by David Kreizman is an unexpected gem of a story that didn’t get much prepublication press and wasn’t even on my radar until a few weeks ago. Told in the teen’s five points of view, I fell in love with each complex, flawed character. Kreizman didn’t create stereotypes, but fully fleshed out people who had real issues without easy answers.
The rebel. The jock. The popular girl. The artist. The anxious overachiever. Five preschool friends grow apart by senior year in high school, though their parents remain friends. Four of their parents die in a plane crash on an annual trip bringing the “Sunnies” back together.
THE YEAR THEY FELL by David Kreizman is an unexpected gem of a story that didn’t get much prepublication press and wasn’t even on my radar until a few weeks ago. Told in the teen’s five points of view, I fell in love with each complex, flawed character. Kreizman didn’t create stereotypes, but fully fleshed out people who had real issues without easy answers.
August 30, 2019
"I like that I don’t know. I like that I get to choose and make mistakes and take detours and get lost. Because when I do that, there’s a chance I’ll find even better things along the way."
Everyone has been telling me that I need to read this book and that it'll change the way I look at life. It was unique and definitely eye-opening but it fell a little flat for me. This book follows the lives of five teens as they try to survive life after four out of the five teens lose their parents in an airplane crash.
Best friends are always supposed to be there for you, no matter what. Josie, Jack, Harrison, Archie, and Dayana have been best friends since pre-school. If one saw the others in need of help, they would all rush to help one another. As they got older, they started to go their separate ways and are now strangers towards one another. But their parents stayed close friends.
Their parents are on the journey of a lifetime but things don't go as planned. Dayana's parents are denied boarding the plane because Dad forgot to update his passport. The plane crashes, killing everyone on board. Dayana hears this news first and now she must tell the others.
Dayana crashes Josie's party to let all her other ex-friends know what has happened to their parents. Once she tells them, they band back together to help one another get through these tough times. They figure out life and what they are going to do with this gift they have received.
Now they are on a mission to find out the truth about what happened to make that plane crash. With secrets and betrayals lurking in dark corners, will these newly reformed friendships survive? Or will it all come crashing down?
The Year They Fell was just as heartbreaking as the synopsis promised. It had its moments of hilarity and uplifting positivity but mostly your heart breaks for these five teens who had their lives change in an instant. There are some darker moments in the book, so beware. These heavy topics are going to haunt you but you have to look at the better outcome. This was a good novel but not something that I would venture into a second time.
Everyone has been telling me that I need to read this book and that it'll change the way I look at life. It was unique and definitely eye-opening but it fell a little flat for me. This book follows the lives of five teens as they try to survive life after four out of the five teens lose their parents in an airplane crash.
Best friends are always supposed to be there for you, no matter what. Josie, Jack, Harrison, Archie, and Dayana have been best friends since pre-school. If one saw the others in need of help, they would all rush to help one another. As they got older, they started to go their separate ways and are now strangers towards one another. But their parents stayed close friends.
Their parents are on the journey of a lifetime but things don't go as planned. Dayana's parents are denied boarding the plane because Dad forgot to update his passport. The plane crashes, killing everyone on board. Dayana hears this news first and now she must tell the others.
Dayana crashes Josie's party to let all her other ex-friends know what has happened to their parents. Once she tells them, they band back together to help one another get through these tough times. They figure out life and what they are going to do with this gift they have received.
Now they are on a mission to find out the truth about what happened to make that plane crash. With secrets and betrayals lurking in dark corners, will these newly reformed friendships survive? Or will it all come crashing down?
The Year They Fell was just as heartbreaking as the synopsis promised. It had its moments of hilarity and uplifting positivity but mostly your heart breaks for these five teens who had their lives change in an instant. There are some darker moments in the book, so beware. These heavy topics are going to haunt you but you have to look at the better outcome. This was a good novel but not something that I would venture into a second time.
January 25, 2020
0.5 stars? Is that even possible??DNF.
I only got to page 33 and couldn’t read anymore. The writing style just isn’t my cup of tea. It’s like the author couldn’t form sentences longer than 4-5 words and was afraid to use any form of imagery.
Also, I get that it’s fiction, but I can promise you that no 17 year old high school student is going to be caught up on a group of friends from THIRTEEN years ago. The story wasn’t plausible and I couldn’t move past that.
This is like one of those fan-fictions that you start reading and then end up exiting out of 2 paragraphs deep because you can just tell it would be nearly unreadable.
I only got to page 33 and couldn’t read anymore. The writing style just isn’t my cup of tea. It’s like the author couldn’t form sentences longer than 4-5 words and was afraid to use any form of imagery.
Also, I get that it’s fiction, but I can promise you that no 17 year old high school student is going to be caught up on a group of friends from THIRTEEN years ago. The story wasn’t plausible and I couldn’t move past that.
This is like one of those fan-fictions that you start reading and then end up exiting out of 2 paragraphs deep because you can just tell it would be nearly unreadable.
July 22, 2019
They bonded in pre-school, but over the years, the "Sunnies" slowly, but surely, grew apart. However, their parents remained friends and vacationed together each year. It was that yearly vacation, that would forever change the lives of these five teens, and also, lead them back to one another.
I was reading this on emoji day, and when prompted to describe my current read using only emojis, I replied as follows: 🛩️😭😭😭😭😭
I shed quite a few tears while reading the first part of this book. To have so many interconnected people simultaneously suffer such a huge loss, tears were inevitable. But, I got to spend a year with these characters, and though the undercurrent of pain and loss was always there, they also experienced a lot of growth, happiness, and hope.
Each character had something they needed to come to terms with in addition to the loss of their parents.
• Archie was the adopted black son of white parents, who was trying to decide if he should seek out his biological mother.
• Harrison lived his whole life according to his mother's exceedingly high standards, and was now left adrift without her guidance.
• Josie had reinvented herself after she was sexually abused, but her abuser's reappearance had her shaken.
• Jack was always made to feel as though he was never good enough, and he struggled with the guilt that he was unable to protect his sister.
• Dayana saw herself as an outsider, and being the only one, whose parents survived, reinforced those feelings.
But, it was together, that they worked through their past and present. It was together, that they recognized their strength. It was together, that they celebrated their hopeful futures. I mourned all the years they lost with one another, but I loved seeing these characters reconnect. They were so much stronger together than apart, and I was glad they finally realized that.
The tears I shed in the beginning of this book were due to the profound sadness I felt for these teens, but those tears at the end, they were happy tears. The ending was filled with so much hope and joy, and I deemed it a payoff worthy of all my tears.
*ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.
BLOG | INSTAGRAM |TWITTER | BLOGLOVIN | FRIEND ME ON GOODREADS
I was reading this on emoji day, and when prompted to describe my current read using only emojis, I replied as follows: 🛩️😭😭😭😭😭
I shed quite a few tears while reading the first part of this book. To have so many interconnected people simultaneously suffer such a huge loss, tears were inevitable. But, I got to spend a year with these characters, and though the undercurrent of pain and loss was always there, they also experienced a lot of growth, happiness, and hope.
Each character had something they needed to come to terms with in addition to the loss of their parents.
• Archie was the adopted black son of white parents, who was trying to decide if he should seek out his biological mother.
• Harrison lived his whole life according to his mother's exceedingly high standards, and was now left adrift without her guidance.
• Josie had reinvented herself after she was sexually abused, but her abuser's reappearance had her shaken.
• Jack was always made to feel as though he was never good enough, and he struggled with the guilt that he was unable to protect his sister.
• Dayana saw herself as an outsider, and being the only one, whose parents survived, reinforced those feelings.
But, it was together, that they worked through their past and present. It was together, that they recognized their strength. It was together, that they celebrated their hopeful futures. I mourned all the years they lost with one another, but I loved seeing these characters reconnect. They were so much stronger together than apart, and I was glad they finally realized that.
The tears I shed in the beginning of this book were due to the profound sadness I felt for these teens, but those tears at the end, they were happy tears. The ending was filled with so much hope and joy, and I deemed it a payoff worthy of all my tears.
*ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.
BLOG | INSTAGRAM |TWITTER | BLOGLOVIN | FRIEND ME ON GOODREADS
October 4, 2019
I think the premise of this book was really unique and very interesting and I think, had there only been a couple of characters, I could have gotten into this more. But there was so much going on and every single character was an absolute train wreck that it was too much for me.
Even the first chapter just felt very strange. 4 kids lose their parents in a plane crash and they kind of just hang around alone at a party and no one comes to check on them until later? There are no police? There's no follow-up? Some of them are living alone without supervision and no one is checking? It just seemed very unrealistic to me, I guess.
I'm also getting too old for high school dramatics, I think. A little of it is okay but, like I said, when every character is a walking stereotype/train wreck, it's too much. It's like The Breakfast Club trying to be modern and adding in a tragic plane crash. I like The Breakfast Club, but I like it because it worked as a movie for that time frame. This book didn't work for me.
My 7th DNF of the year...whoops.
Even the first chapter just felt very strange. 4 kids lose their parents in a plane crash and they kind of just hang around alone at a party and no one comes to check on them until later? There are no police? There's no follow-up? Some of them are living alone without supervision and no one is checking? It just seemed very unrealistic to me, I guess.
I'm also getting too old for high school dramatics, I think. A little of it is okay but, like I said, when every character is a walking stereotype/train wreck, it's too much. It's like The Breakfast Club trying to be modern and adding in a tragic plane crash. I like The Breakfast Club, but I like it because it worked as a movie for that time frame. This book didn't work for me.
My 7th DNF of the year...whoops.
March 17, 2021
TW: Verführung Minderjähriger, Tod der Eltern/Trauer, Gewalt
Das war ein echt berührendes Buch mit authentischen Charakteren. Trotzdem konnte ich mich nicht mit jedem der Fünf anfreunden, aber das war auch gar nicht nötig.
Das war ein echt berührendes Buch mit authentischen Charakteren. Trotzdem konnte ich mich nicht mit jedem der Fünf anfreunden, aber das war auch gar nicht nötig.
September 25, 2019
Hello cliches! The five Sunnies - the main characters are really just caricatures. Even their parents are caricatures. The white people who adopt a black kid (geeky, glasses, draws really well even at the age of 5?!) and then are miraculously able to have a perfect son of their own. The rich white people with the twins - she's molested by her softball coach because her parents never have time for her and he's in an ADHD nightmare from which neither parents nor teachers get him help. The hispanic goth girl who takes random pills from her parents cabinet.... UGH - I couldn't care less about these people even when the parents died. Seriously, I read enough to just keep getting irked with the author. No ending is worth the beginning of this book. I didn't even bother to skip to the end.
August 21, 2019
I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions expressed are my own.
My students will find themselves in the pages of Kreizman's "The Year They Fell." They will relate to the actions and thoughts of each of the "sunnies." They will cheer and weep and learn that they too have enough in themselves to make life work.
I look forward to sharing this title next year and hear what they have to say.
My students will find themselves in the pages of Kreizman's "The Year They Fell." They will relate to the actions and thoughts of each of the "sunnies." They will cheer and weep and learn that they too have enough in themselves to make life work.
I look forward to sharing this title next year and hear what they have to say.
August 21, 2019
4.5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Besides a not so small bomb being dropped, this was one of the most unexpected reads this year for me. I couldn’t put this story down from start to finish. Although one of my least favourite tropes was introduced very close to the ending, I grew so attached to these characters and truly felt like I was a part of the Sunnies.
Would definitely pick up another book by this author, possibly one of my new favourites.
Besides a not so small bomb being dropped, this was one of the most unexpected reads this year for me. I couldn’t put this story down from start to finish. Although one of my least favourite tropes was introduced very close to the ending, I grew so attached to these characters and truly felt like I was a part of the Sunnies.
Would definitely pick up another book by this author, possibly one of my new favourites.
May 8, 2020
I have a lot of thoughts about this book.
I really loved the beginning. It was a fresh plot, the characters had some diversity from the looks of it, and it was a pleasant read for a few chapters.
However, a lot went wrong.
Slowly, the characters felt more like caricatures, specifically Jack and Harrison. Josie and Archie had so much more development and life breathed into them over the others. Dayana was in the middle of the pack. I would’ve loved more on her rebellion, on her punk appearance, but we didn’t get a lot on it.
Jack pissed me off. Cody and Siobhan pissed me off. I would’ve loved a proper send-off for Cody and Siobhan in Jack and Josie’s lives rather than just stating their relationships fell apart. I wanted to see more of the awful stuff Cody and Siobhan would say and do, because it would make cutting them off even more rewarding.
The ending was also infuriating. I did not expect the crash to be suspicious, so that didn’t make me mad. No, the big reveal that Josie was pregnant, how fast everything wrapped up, and how everyone acted, was what infuriated me. I could tell this was written by someone who used to work for soap operas. The ending felt so fast, I wanted more about their trip, the tattoos, how Harrison and Mackenzie got together, but it’s all just thrown together in one epilogue.
So, I’ve bitched a lot, what gave it a 3-star rating?
Archie and Josie, outside of the pregnancy subplot. I loved the development of their relationship, and I loved how they developed as characters.
The arc of Harrison and his dad. That was a shitty, infuriating character who had a proper build-up to being sent off. I loved that.
The friendship between Dayana and Harrison. The Christmas party between the Sunnies. Dayana’s near survivor’s guilt, even though she wasn’t on the plane. The plot was fresh. At times, there was so much tension I had to keep reading, like when we discovered the father of Josie and Jack was cheating on his wife with Dayana’s mother. The story of Josie and Coach Murph was also very well-handled.
I loved the different POVs. I think this is one time where it really worked in the favor of the story, as we could see different takes on events in the story.
Also, the cover art is beautiful. I wish Harrison and Dayana would’ve ended up together, but I think she could end with Jack as well.
Overall, a solid 3/5 stars.
I really loved the beginning. It was a fresh plot, the characters had some diversity from the looks of it, and it was a pleasant read for a few chapters.
However, a lot went wrong.
Slowly, the characters felt more like caricatures, specifically Jack and Harrison. Josie and Archie had so much more development and life breathed into them over the others. Dayana was in the middle of the pack. I would’ve loved more on her rebellion, on her punk appearance, but we didn’t get a lot on it.
Jack pissed me off. Cody and Siobhan pissed me off. I would’ve loved a proper send-off for Cody and Siobhan in Jack and Josie’s lives rather than just stating their relationships fell apart. I wanted to see more of the awful stuff Cody and Siobhan would say and do, because it would make cutting them off even more rewarding.
The ending was also infuriating. I did not expect the crash to be suspicious, so that didn’t make me mad. No, the big reveal that Josie was pregnant, how fast everything wrapped up, and how everyone acted, was what infuriated me. I could tell this was written by someone who used to work for soap operas. The ending felt so fast, I wanted more about their trip, the tattoos, how Harrison and Mackenzie got together, but it’s all just thrown together in one epilogue.
So, I’ve bitched a lot, what gave it a 3-star rating?
Archie and Josie, outside of the pregnancy subplot. I loved the development of their relationship, and I loved how they developed as characters.
The arc of Harrison and his dad. That was a shitty, infuriating character who had a proper build-up to being sent off. I loved that.
The friendship between Dayana and Harrison. The Christmas party between the Sunnies. Dayana’s near survivor’s guilt, even though she wasn’t on the plane. The plot was fresh. At times, there was so much tension I had to keep reading, like when we discovered the father of Josie and Jack was cheating on his wife with Dayana’s mother. The story of Josie and Coach Murph was also very well-handled.
I loved the different POVs. I think this is one time where it really worked in the favor of the story, as we could see different takes on events in the story.
Also, the cover art is beautiful. I wish Harrison and Dayana would’ve ended up together, but I think she could end with Jack as well.
Overall, a solid 3/5 stars.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 3, 2021
I graduated high school with David and am so happy for him on this accomplishment. This is a great YA read. Giving each of the five main characters turns with the narration was very effective, and while the general tone was light, I appreciated the care he took with the serious teen issues of drugs, grief, mental health and sexual assault. Well done!
August 19, 2019
An amazing YA debut novel ! Loved each character so much. It had humor, emotion, and I just couldn’t put it down. I can’t wait for my teenage daughter to read it next! A must read
March 18, 2020
It was good, but it was a lot going on in it.
April 14, 2020
I thoroughly enjoyed this realistic fiction about five teenagers finding friendship together long after their preschool days due to a shared, tragic event the fall of their senior year.
July 29, 2024
4.5 stars ⭐️
January 1, 2022
This is so bad I want to give it a 0, but thats not possible so I give it a one. This book was honestly HORRIBLE. I DEFINITELY DON'T RECOMMEND UNLESS YOU WANT TO WASTE YOUR TIME.
August 21, 2021
I like it but I felt like this book was all over the place 🤷🏽♀️
April 26, 2020
I don't think this book will linger with me for a very long time, but while I read it I found it hard to put down. Check out my full review at Forever Young Adult.
March 26, 2019
Funny how friendships change. Five friends from daycare who have drifted apart are brought back together when a plane carrying all of their parents crashes on a vacation to Anguilla. Overcoming this loss and rekindling friendships in the base of the story, but each character has additional challenges: head injury from sports, adopted and a different race from parents, obsessed with "The Plan" for achieving success, pill addiction and then the big one -- sexual abuse from a coach. Then there is teenage pregnancy. Then there is a potential government conspiracy. A deadbeat father. An affair between parents. What went from overcoming loss moves onto overcoming everything. It is a lot! Perhaps choose your issue and go deep on that - don't throw them all together. The story is told from multiple perspectives, which works well, but we don't ever get to fully know any of the characters and rely on others to fill in the details. It makes it hard to trust what's happening.
May 10, 2020
This story was compelling in that it was told in multiple POVs that were all interwoven. This is a powerful story of overcoming tragedy and finding connections in unlikely places. It has a similar vibe to The Breakfast Club and honestly shares the story of teens experiencing grief and trauma.
While I couldn't put this down, it did feel like this book was trying to do too much. Not because it wasn't realistic, but because it was too realistic and that was a lot to process in the 300 pages of text. We have a drug addiction, cheating, anxiety, a concussion that severely changes someone's personality, pregnancy, romance, decisions about college, a manipulative dad, statutory rape... and that isn't even touching on the main plot point of the book.
I appreciate the author making each of the characters unique and giving them a distinct personality and a clear background but plot-wise it just was a lot to take in.
While I couldn't put this down, it did feel like this book was trying to do too much. Not because it wasn't realistic, but because it was too realistic and that was a lot to process in the 300 pages of text. We have a drug addiction, cheating, anxiety, a concussion that severely changes someone's personality, pregnancy, romance, decisions about college, a manipulative dad, statutory rape... and that isn't even touching on the main plot point of the book.
I appreciate the author making each of the characters unique and giving them a distinct personality and a clear background but plot-wise it just was a lot to take in.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 2, 2023
Wow!!! LOVE LOVE LOVE this book. I was so wrapped up in these characters and this story, i laughed and i cried. The author is some story teller...the depth of these characters is incredible ...I’m amazed at how many different storylines were happening, how all these details were intertwined. I’m really sad that it’s over but I’m ready for a movie!
A month after reading this book, i traveled by plane with the same number of couples to the same island and i could not stop thinking of this story...it really stuck with me. Highly recommend!!!
A month after reading this book, i traveled by plane with the same number of couples to the same island and i could not stop thinking of this story...it really stuck with me. Highly recommend!!!
September 24, 2019
DNF after chapter 1. Sorry, but any book that starts with a teen so casually deciding which prescription pills (that aren't even hers) to take on a random "fun" night isn't for me. On to something else...
October 29, 2020
I was in the mood for a Young Adult book so I picked up The Year They Fell by David Kreizman at the library. It’s a teenage drama about five former friends whose lives suddenly change the day their parents head off to an island vacation. The plane crashes and there are no survivors.
Josie, Jack, Archie, Harrison and Dayana were great friends in preschool, but that was a long time ago. Now about to start senior year of high school, their lives are vastly different. Twins Josie and Jack hang with the fast crowd, but Archie, Harrison and Dayana are awkward outsiders to that world.
Josie and Jack may seem perfect, but they have their demons. Josie, queen of the social scene, has a terrible secret. Jack is a hulking football star with a violent temper. The others also struggle. Archie clings to his sketch pad and wonders how he fits into his adoptive white family. Harrison’s dad abandoned him and his mom and he suffers from major anxiety. Dayana’s parents aren’t getting along and she pops pills to cope. In addition, past dynamics from years ago interfere with their current relationships.
As the former friends awkwardly circle each other, Harrison launches an investigation. Soon the group must confront painful details about their parents’ lives. Harrison determines the crash might not be an accident and tries to convince the others with his extensive research.
I enjoyed this fast read, set in River Bank, New Jersey, a town I hadn’t heard of, but was surprised to find in a familiar part of the Jersey shore. In addition to the tragedy, the author packs a lot of major developments and problems into these high schoolers! Probably not realistic and that is my one gripe with the story. The high school setting and dialogue seemed true to life, but I hope no sample set of high schoolers has this many things to deal with.
In addition to suffering tragic loss, Kreizman introduces important themes into his story, including love, friendship, sexual identity, family relationships, fitting in, anxiety, sexual abuse, and drug addiction. While these are all important, I think the story would have been better if the author focused on fewer issues. As a result, the story reads more like a soap opera. Pretty interesting because Kreizman used to write for television soap operas and even spent time as a writer for the WWE. I laughed when I read that because those plots are really over the top!
Despite these comments, I’d still recommend The Year They Fell as an engaging story with modern themes and plenty of teen angst. I also love the cover and think the title is great because it makes potential readers wonder what the story will be.
Josie, Jack, Archie, Harrison and Dayana were great friends in preschool, but that was a long time ago. Now about to start senior year of high school, their lives are vastly different. Twins Josie and Jack hang with the fast crowd, but Archie, Harrison and Dayana are awkward outsiders to that world.
Josie and Jack may seem perfect, but they have their demons. Josie, queen of the social scene, has a terrible secret. Jack is a hulking football star with a violent temper. The others also struggle. Archie clings to his sketch pad and wonders how he fits into his adoptive white family. Harrison’s dad abandoned him and his mom and he suffers from major anxiety. Dayana’s parents aren’t getting along and she pops pills to cope. In addition, past dynamics from years ago interfere with their current relationships.
As the former friends awkwardly circle each other, Harrison launches an investigation. Soon the group must confront painful details about their parents’ lives. Harrison determines the crash might not be an accident and tries to convince the others with his extensive research.
I enjoyed this fast read, set in River Bank, New Jersey, a town I hadn’t heard of, but was surprised to find in a familiar part of the Jersey shore. In addition to the tragedy, the author packs a lot of major developments and problems into these high schoolers! Probably not realistic and that is my one gripe with the story. The high school setting and dialogue seemed true to life, but I hope no sample set of high schoolers has this many things to deal with.
In addition to suffering tragic loss, Kreizman introduces important themes into his story, including love, friendship, sexual identity, family relationships, fitting in, anxiety, sexual abuse, and drug addiction. While these are all important, I think the story would have been better if the author focused on fewer issues. As a result, the story reads more like a soap opera. Pretty interesting because Kreizman used to write for television soap operas and even spent time as a writer for the WWE. I laughed when I read that because those plots are really over the top!
Despite these comments, I’d still recommend The Year They Fell as an engaging story with modern themes and plenty of teen angst. I also love the cover and think the title is great because it makes potential readers wonder what the story will be.
July 30, 2019
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**A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**
The Year They Fell by David Kreizman caught my attention from the start. I enjoy reading young adult fiction and usually I lean more towards feel good novels when I do, but The Year They Fell sounded like it was going to be dramatic and intense and I couldn’t wait to read it. Lucky for me Kreizman delivered.
This story is not a feel good story. It’s the polar opposite in a way. Not to say it’s going to make you feel terrible, but Kreizman touches on subjects that I feel a lot of other authors don’t or avoid. This novel talked about the death of a parent, kids becoming orphans in the prime of their teen years when they are trying to figure out who they are and what they want to be. He touches on sexual assualt, drugs, sports and their pressure to be great and the injuries that can ruin lives. It talks about anger issues and depression and anxiety. All these subjects that are taboo in books because they don’t typically attract readers made this book so incredible. I feel like there are teens everywhere that could relate to at least one of these characters that Kreizman created.
My only problem with the book is at times the situation seemed slightly unbelievable. Even though some were 18, I feel like it was too easy for the to push the adults out of the way. Once their parents died, they basically had no rules and no supervision. And someone all the bills continued to get paid even though we never hear about how they suddenly learned about mortgages and such. I know they are wealthy, at least some, but it just seemed odd that the adults would leave so easily after being told by teenagers to go. Otherwise, as a whole, the book was great.
I’m not sure I have a favorite character because each one brought so much to the table. They created this perfect little dysfunctional family that in an odd way helped them all become stronger and more function in their own lives. The story flows smoothly even though it jumps between characters.
I think anyone can enjoy this book that loves hard hitting stories about loss and trauma, but also about fighting your way back to the surface (direct reference to the story). Pick it up and hopefully you love it as much as I did.
**A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**
The Year They Fell by David Kreizman caught my attention from the start. I enjoy reading young adult fiction and usually I lean more towards feel good novels when I do, but The Year They Fell sounded like it was going to be dramatic and intense and I couldn’t wait to read it. Lucky for me Kreizman delivered.
This story is not a feel good story. It’s the polar opposite in a way. Not to say it’s going to make you feel terrible, but Kreizman touches on subjects that I feel a lot of other authors don’t or avoid. This novel talked about the death of a parent, kids becoming orphans in the prime of their teen years when they are trying to figure out who they are and what they want to be. He touches on sexual assualt, drugs, sports and their pressure to be great and the injuries that can ruin lives. It talks about anger issues and depression and anxiety. All these subjects that are taboo in books because they don’t typically attract readers made this book so incredible. I feel like there are teens everywhere that could relate to at least one of these characters that Kreizman created.
My only problem with the book is at times the situation seemed slightly unbelievable. Even though some were 18, I feel like it was too easy for the to push the adults out of the way. Once their parents died, they basically had no rules and no supervision. And someone all the bills continued to get paid even though we never hear about how they suddenly learned about mortgages and such. I know they are wealthy, at least some, but it just seemed odd that the adults would leave so easily after being told by teenagers to go. Otherwise, as a whole, the book was great.
I’m not sure I have a favorite character because each one brought so much to the table. They created this perfect little dysfunctional family that in an odd way helped them all become stronger and more function in their own lives. The story flows smoothly even though it jumps between characters.
I think anyone can enjoy this book that loves hard hitting stories about loss and trauma, but also about fighting your way back to the surface (direct reference to the story). Pick it up and hopefully you love it as much as I did.
July 10, 2019
I loved this book because it's so deeply real while also being page-turning addictive. The premise hooked me immediately. It's so true how parents often make their parent friend group in preschool and kids are so open and non-judgmental and form particularly close friendships that you think will last. Only they don't - kids grow up with wildly diverging personalities and the pressure and anxiety as they become tweens and teens to belong creates divisions and cliques and alienation.
What happens when their parents' yearly adult vacation ends in their plane crashing, instantly making these 5 former friends orphans? It's Breakfast Club meets Party of 5 but goes way deeper into these 5 superbly drawn characters. From the first paragraph, you know Kreizman is a fantastic writer. There's tons of emotional depth but also so much humor and just great storytelling. He weaves so many fascinating threads where you get mini-mysteries that reveal more and more of the characters to us and to each other.
This book took me right back to being a teen, the voices and issues and anxiety and relationships were so spot on that you're immediately immersed in the characters and the story. But this book also makes you think. About your own friendships you lost, the ones you rekindled, the categories we put ourselves or get corralled into, the assumptions we put on people because of how they seem versus what they're really experiencing inside. It's like when you go to a high school reunion and learn things your classmates were going through or anxieties or experiences you never knew they had. What added to the depth of this book and the addictiveness to find out what happens next, is the rare look into wildly different kids being forced to dig into all those rich and complicated layers now. The stakes of the tragedy require them to go deeper than you often get to see teen characters go and it's a really beautiful and captivating and fun read that will keep you thinking long after you put the book down.
What happens when their parents' yearly adult vacation ends in their plane crashing, instantly making these 5 former friends orphans? It's Breakfast Club meets Party of 5 but goes way deeper into these 5 superbly drawn characters. From the first paragraph, you know Kreizman is a fantastic writer. There's tons of emotional depth but also so much humor and just great storytelling. He weaves so many fascinating threads where you get mini-mysteries that reveal more and more of the characters to us and to each other.
This book took me right back to being a teen, the voices and issues and anxiety and relationships were so spot on that you're immediately immersed in the characters and the story. But this book also makes you think. About your own friendships you lost, the ones you rekindled, the categories we put ourselves or get corralled into, the assumptions we put on people because of how they seem versus what they're really experiencing inside. It's like when you go to a high school reunion and learn things your classmates were going through or anxieties or experiences you never knew they had. What added to the depth of this book and the addictiveness to find out what happens next, is the rare look into wildly different kids being forced to dig into all those rich and complicated layers now. The stakes of the tragedy require them to go deeper than you often get to see teen characters go and it's a really beautiful and captivating and fun read that will keep you thinking long after you put the book down.
August 25, 2019
As often happens, five youngsters who were inseparable during preschool have drifted apart over the years, so much so that they barely even recognize each other even though their parents remain good friends. On a vacation trip to Anguilla right before the senior year of their offspring, all of the parents but Dayana's die in a plane crash. Hers missed that fate when her father doesn't have a valid passport. The crash and deaths bring the former friends back together again, but as some of the draw closer, they also begin to learn about their own individual secrets and even some of the secrets their parents were keeping. Teen readers will find someone with whom to relate as they read about Josie, Jack, Harrison, Archie, and Dayana and the many ways they have tried to cope over the years. It might have been interesting to delve more deeply into what drove them apart other than inertia and life changes, but it also interesting to realize that none of these adolescents are what others think they are. For instance, the charmed life led by siblings Josie and Jack belies her betrayal by a trusted mentor and her twin's guilt at not being able to save her from that betrayal and how neither one wanted to disappoint their parents. This book covers some emotional territory and many different issues even while revealing the magical thinking many of us may revert to when tragedy strikes as we look for evidence of conspiracy or a plot when all along, it may turn out to be a simple human error or the failure of small piece of equipment.
August 2, 2019
Archie, Dayana, Harrison, Jack, and Josie were best friends in nursery school, but by high school they grew apart. When their parents die in a plane crash will it bring them closer or further apart? The crash forces each kid to examine the things which separated them over the years. Each chapter alternates between the points of views of the five “Sunnies,” named for the nursery school they attended where readers see how each are coping with the tragedy. The novel is at its best when it focuses on the grief each teen is going through. While coping with their grief, each teen is forced to deal with things from their pasts that they rather not deal with it. Readers feel each teen’s grief although the book could get very dramatic at times. Yet some of the dramatic moments of the novel will keep teens reading and prevents the book from becoming too depressing. Each character starts out as a particular type but as the novel moves on the characters become more interesting and become something more than a stereotype. This book is recommended for those looking for serious realistic YA fiction that doesn’t get too bogged down by its own seriousness.
September 21, 2023
The Year They Fell by David Kreizman teaches us the importance of families. Dayana, Archie, Jack, Josie, and Harrison were best friends in preschool, but as they grew up, they drifted apart. Their parents, however, stayed very close and every year they all go on a vacation together.
This year, Dayana’s parents had expired passports and they could not go to Anguilla with everyone else. At first, they were upset, but then they found out that the plane had crashed and no one had survived. These five very different high schoolers reunite to deal with their feelings of shock and grief, and together, they created a new family.
The author conveys multiple messages throughout the book. One of them is how we are never alone, even during the lowest parts of our life. When the tragedy struck, many friends and family checked on the five high schoolers and tried to help them while also dealing with their feelings of grief. The five of them all reunited despite their differences and changes in behavior throughout the years, and together, they comforted each other and helped each other out when they needed it the most.
Another message in the book is how small we are and how small our problems are in the world. Eventually, everyone at school stopped talking about the accident even though not much time had passed. Even though the plane crash was devastating, it was not a unique event, and the world kept on spinning. The five friends learned these lessons while also navigating life without their parents.
I really enjoyed reading this book because it was full of shocking plot twists and realistic characters that have to live through the most devastating moments of their life. I would recommend this book to any teenager who enjoys complex plots and characters who do not always make the best decisions. This page-turner will have you up all night wondering what will happen next.
- Anya, Grade 7
This year, Dayana’s parents had expired passports and they could not go to Anguilla with everyone else. At first, they were upset, but then they found out that the plane had crashed and no one had survived. These five very different high schoolers reunite to deal with their feelings of shock and grief, and together, they created a new family.
The author conveys multiple messages throughout the book. One of them is how we are never alone, even during the lowest parts of our life. When the tragedy struck, many friends and family checked on the five high schoolers and tried to help them while also dealing with their feelings of grief. The five of them all reunited despite their differences and changes in behavior throughout the years, and together, they comforted each other and helped each other out when they needed it the most.
Another message in the book is how small we are and how small our problems are in the world. Eventually, everyone at school stopped talking about the accident even though not much time had passed. Even though the plane crash was devastating, it was not a unique event, and the world kept on spinning. The five friends learned these lessons while also navigating life without their parents.
I really enjoyed reading this book because it was full of shocking plot twists and realistic characters that have to live through the most devastating moments of their life. I would recommend this book to any teenager who enjoys complex plots and characters who do not always make the best decisions. This page-turner will have you up all night wondering what will happen next.
- Anya, Grade 7
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