I have always known I have been blessed with great friendships. This book is a telling of just how important those connections are. ~Sheila

When Louisa meets him, he is older, sick, and of all places, in an alleyway. But – she would know him anywhere – after all, he is The Artist.
If timing could be called perfect, perhaps this would be just that… or not… depending on how you look at.
But suddenly, 18-year-old Luisa is thrust into an adventure of a lifetime, as she goes from having nothing to having everything – is she wants it or not… and from going friendless to possibly having a friend… or two… and learning about what its like to have people that know you inside and out and support you – the real you – even the dark stuff – even the smelly stuff, and absolutely the stuff that you lock in your heart for all the years to come and beyond.

It’s funny because this is an author that I have really enjoyed (Beartown) – which sadly I see I never reviewed, but do discuss in an oddly titled post many years ago. And there were books that other people loved and I did for whatever reason did not – A Man Called Ove, and My Grandmother Todl Me To Tell You She’s Sorry (read but also sadly, no reviewed so I can not even tell you what it was that I did not enjoy).

But – that was then and this is now and I just finished listening to My Friends. I enjoyed Bear Town… I liked this one even better.
My Friends covers what not all of us had growing up – that amazing friend group… the getting together pretty much daily to ride bikes, and laugh, to get into trouble, to become a part of each other’s stories. My Friends tells of such a group – all with their own demons – but they had each other.
When we enter this story, the friends are adults now – time and situations have for the most part separated them… but a chance encounter with a young girl in an alleyway who has a fiery spirit that feels somewhat familiar, and a painting worth millions… well, this may be a story worth sharing.
I loved the narration, I loved the subtle and funny moments, the memories as well as the present time and honestly this book felt like a reminder to me how lucky I was to have close friends all my life – that I had the cousins down the road that I biked with and got in trouble with almost every weekend… and how lucky I am now to have another group of friends, not the same I gre up with, but just as wild…. and a plethera of solid memories because of all the crazy awesome we have done together…. (traveling, dressing up, costumes, inflatables, 5ks and mud runs, rooftops, concerts, haunted spaces, stories that are shared often and stories that we have pinky sworn stay between us, weddings… and yeah, funerals too.

Amazing amazing writing – this would be a great discussion book as there is so much to talk about, including your own stories of growing up and who were the people that create your stories…

If you have time for one book this season, let this be the book.

Rated: 4.75 out of 5
Read Author Before: yes
Read Author Again: I would
Where Read: Listened on audio – mowing the lawn