This novel presents some scary topics, like mental health and suicide, but the authors create a narrator that is totally believable and universal. Although some of the decisions Evan Hansen makes are quite questionable, he eventually makes things right. Readers can learn many lessons from Evan's snowballing lies.Evan is struggling, socially and emotionally. His mom gets him some help, but the doctor that he sees requests that Evan write an optimistic letter to himself everyday. These letters begin "Dear Evan Hansen, Today is going to be an amazing day, and here's why...". One day he is running late, so he prints his letter at school, where it is intercepted off the printer by Connor Murphy. Later that night, Connor commits suicide, and his parents find Evan's letter thinking it is Connor's suicide note. Evan then makes the decision to pretend to Connor's parents that the two were best friends. And this is where the snow-balling begins. One lie leads to another and another, but Evan, the once anxiety-ridden loner, is now confident and popular, and the truth gets farther and farther away from him.
As a mother and teacher, this novel makes me cringe, not because it is poorly written and unbelievable. Quite the opposite actually. I cringe because I could see this scenario playing out in reality, and it is terrifying. The moral of the story here is to tell the truth, always, and to be kind to everyone.
- Four stars
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