Name: How to Make Friends with the Dark
Rating: 4.155982905982906 (117 reviews)
ISBN: 9781101934753

Kathleen Glasgow

Tiger, sixteen, has been pushing away from her overprotective mother, but when her mother dies suddenly Tiger must learn to live when it feels she is surrounded by darkness.

How to Make Friends with the Dark

Sarah Campbell

Maybe I should have been better about seeing her. Seeing Mae-Lynn’s sadness. But you don’t realize what it feels like, this hole, this missing, until it happens to you. 

sharkie

"Thaddy says we're just stories in somebody's book and every time they turn a page, that's when new stuff happens. But I think we're like one of those snow balls. You know, shake'em up and everything and nothing goes back where it was."

"You don't honor your mother by wearing a dress, honey. You honor your mother by remembering her, and holding her dear, right here." She taps her heart.

Sometimes you're hungry, so thirsty for something to fill you up, you've craved it fir so long, but when you finally have it, it hurts going down. It's not a medicine for what ails you. It might just be the thing keeping you sick.

Because what other choice is there, really?

raia – inactive

I want my mom to get up off that fucking table and hug me as hard as she can, even if it hurts me.

The last thing I said to my mom was "Why can't you ever just fucking leave me alone?"

And then it hits me, hard, that she's done precisely that, and forever, really really forever.

Adults always say they want you to tell them how you feel, but when you do, they mostly tell you to try to feel another way, one that requires less work from them.

"Just love who you want, you know? Life is so much shit. We should just be able to love who we want."

When I reach a trembling finger to touch my mother's face as she talks to me from the past, the screen kind of ripples, and she pauses, smiling in an amused way, and moves her head just so, right at the moment when my finger touches her cheek on the screen.

"What would you say to your loved one, if you had just one more chance, just one?"

"Write me a letter telling me how to live for the rest of my life without you."

There's so much I wish I didn't have to know about living.

Suze

But there isn't a single word in the universe that you can think of that would describe the way you feel right now.

It’s sort of like that poem: I thought I was done with death, at least a little bit, but death wasn’t done with me.

taci

I will be in the dark forever, feeling around for a light switch and never finding it

The story of an awful, universe-gone-mad-mistake, and one girl's emotional battle for clarity and forgiveness from the New York Times bestselling author of Girl in Pieces I thought I was done with death, at least a little bit, but death wasn't done with me. It's always been Tiger and her mother against the world. Then, on a day like any other, Tiger's mother dies. Now it's Tiger, alone. And she must learn to make friends with the dark. PRAISE 'Breathtaking and heartbreaking, and I loved it with all my heart.' - Jennifer Niven 'A rare and powerful novel...dives deep into the heart of grief and healing with honesty, empathy, and grace.' - Karen M. McManus 'Magnificent. A beautiful, heartbreaking alleluia to survival.' - Brendan Kiely

Sam Chew

Nel Cleys

“you are carrying so many heavy feelings.

there just isn’t enough room for them all.”

this book broke my heart, i could never imagine losing my mum so young. 

the way kathleen wrote about tigers grief and the way she was dealing with it resonated with me so much. 

i’m so glad tiger found out she had a sister otherwise i fear how she would have ended up.

although some chapters were long and extremely repetitive, kathleen glasgows books ALWAYS tug at the heart strings. 

“you are carrying so many heavy feelings.

there just isn’t enough room for them all.”

~ ♡ 3.5/5

this book broke my heart, i could never imagine losing my mum so young. 

the way kathleen wrote about tigers grief and the way she was dealing with it resonated with me so much. 

i’m so glad tiger found out she had a sister otherwise i fear how she would have ended up.

although some chapters were long and extremely repetitive, kathleen glasgows books ALWAYS tug at the heart strings. 

This all went way too close to my heart I needed to take a break while reading so many times cause it affected me so much. It’s such a good book but I’m so happy it’s over lol

Pia 

How to Make Friends in the Dark

o livro é tristíssimo mas senti que estava um pouco estagnado (o que é ironico tendo em conta o tema)

Kathleen's books never fail to impress me. Her writing and characters are so real, genuine and flawed

This book taught me a lot about grief, foster homes and how to live with a hole in your heart

In some ways it reminded me of Charlie from "Girl in pieces", which is another book by Kathleen that I loved. 

What i love about her books is that even when the character is spiraling and things are going downhill, in the end they still end on a hopeful note ♡

Lulu Evensen

Kathleen's books never fail to impress me. Her writing and characters are so real, genuine and flawed

This book taught me a lot about grief, foster homes and how to live with a hole in your heart

In some ways it reminded me of Charlie from "Girl in pieces", which is another book by Kathleen that I loved. 

What i love about her books is that even when the character is spiraling and things are going downhill, in the end they still end on a hopeful note ♡



Krystyna 

This is an emotional, heartbreaking contemporary about a girl navigating grief and loss. It's raw and beautiful and couldn't have been told more perfectly. I really loved this one (it also hit kind of close to me for a few reasons). There were 2 parts that I wished had a little bit more detail, so that the reader was told what was said to a character and about a character on the page, but those are very minimal things that didn't take anything away from the story. It would have just been nice to have been added, in my opinion. This was such a heartfelt story. It would be perfect for fans of Letters to the Lost by Brigid Kemmerer. 

I love how this is not focused on romance or just "getting over it." I really appreciated how the author depicted grief and showed that it's not the same for everyone and doesn't take the same amount of time for everyone. I also really appreciated the depiction of foster care. It was just a really honest portrayal and such a touching story that really tugged at my heartstrings. I definitely recommend picking this one up.

This is out of my comfort zone, but I still liked it. There wasn’t much wrong with it other than the extreme feeling of helplessness it gives me every time I think about it. “How to Make Friends with the Dark” dives deep into the grief of loss and the things that come with it. It also touches on the corrupt in the foster system, along with learning the secrets that her mom never cared to share. You follow along while Tiger learns to cope and grow with the massive hole punched deep in her heart. This book is perfect for anyone who needs someone to relate to after the loss of a loved one.                       (Check warnings) 

Izzy 

Moving, heartbreaking but at the same time healing

Gwenifer

Alexa M

4.5!!
such a good YA book about grief and loss.

The story of an awful, universe-gone-mad-mistake, and one girl's emotional battle for clarity and forgiveness Tiger's mother has always been her whole world, but now she's sixteen her mother's control over everything in her life is suffocating. Just when Tiger feels she can no longer bear the way her life is managed, the unimaginable happens and her mother dies. As she slowly begins to make a way for herself, Tiger creates a new kind of family, some related and some not, who will love her and travel forward with her. This is how you make friends with the dark.

I just love all the books I've read by Kathleen Glasglow and this one did not disappoint, either.

It feels so pure and delicate to read the story of Tiger and I think her story of grief was portrayed very well.

I just love all the books I've read by Kathleen Glasglow and this one did not disappoint, either.

It feels so pure and delicate to read the story of Tiger and I think her story of grief was portrayed very well.

Caroll-Ann

** spoiler alert **
           I’d give this book a solid 4,5 stars. It was a good and important story but at the same time I kinda felt like something was missing, I couldn’t lose myself in the story.

It’s still such a good read though. I can sympathize with the character and what she’s going through mentally, not about the losing your mother but the way she feels while she grieves. 

A little trigger warning since the character talks about suicide and selfharming, as well as abuse.

'A BOOK AS FIERCE, TENDER, AND RARE AS ITS APTLY NAMED HEROINE, TIGER.' - Meg Leder, author of Letting Go of Gravity It's the brightest day of summer and it's dark outside. It's dark in your house, dark in your room, and dark in your heart. You feel like the darkness is going to split you apart. Here is what happens when your mother dies. That's how it feels for Tiger. It's always been Tiger and her mother against the world. Then, on a day like any other, Tiger's mother dies. And now it's Tiger, alone. Here is how you learn to make friends with the dark. From the author of the New York Times bestselling novel Girl in Pieces comes a new heartbreaking story about love and loss and learning how to continue when it feels like you're surrounded by darkness. PRAISE FOR HOW TO MAKE FRIENDS WITH THE DARK: 'A book as fierce, tender, and rare as its aptly named heroine, Tiger. How to Make Friends with the Dark is a gorgeously nuanced meditation on grief and family, and the incredible love that can pull you through the darkest of times.' - Meg Leder, author of Letting Go of Gravity 'Kathleen Glasgow is the rare type of skilled storyteller that knows you have to hurt your characters before putting them back together. I loved every word of this lyrical and devastating novel.' - Kara Thomas, author of The Cheerleaders 'In this raw, powerful, and heartbreaking meditation on loss and grief, Glasgow writes with unflinching beauty. We meet Tiger Tolliver at her most broken - at her darkest moment - and yet, somehow, How to Make Friends With the Dark teaches us how to let the light in.' - Julie Buxbaum, NYT bestselling author of Tell Me Three Things PRAISE FOR GIRL IN PIECES: 'Girl, Interrupted meets Speak.' - Refinery29.com 'A dark yet powerful read.' - PasteMagazine.com 'One of the most affecting novels we have read.' - Goop.com 'Breathtaking and beautifully written.' - Bustle 'A haunting, beautiful, and necessary book that will stay with you long after you've read the last page.' - Nicola Yoon, #1 NYT bestselling author of Everything, Everything and The Sun Is Also a Star

harper fitzpatrick

i cried. this was beautiful. one of the best books about grief i've ever read. highly recommend. tiger's relationship with thaddeus hurt my heart.

When I was at 70% I was thinking of giving 3 or even 2 stars, I had trouble continuing reading and I felt like things were going on a slow pace. But after finishing the book and reading the author’s note, I truly realize that this book is about grief. And not just some teenage drama to entertain hopeless teenagers. And that this is just a really good Grief Book. About grief.

Welcome to the Big Suck now I guess

lalitha

the portrayal of grief and losing a parent in this book was fantastic i don’t think i’ll ever find something like this again. literal tears in my eyes as i’m typing this. 5 stars forever.

Lauren Tabor

This was one of the saddest books I’ve ever read, but it was beautiful at the same time. I cried through this whole book at what Tiger went through and what everyone in this book went through. I can’t imagine what it’s like to lose someone so close to you and it was hard to read about. But I know so many people are grieving and I feel like this book gave me a new perspective on what those people are going through. 





Thank you to Netgalley and Delacorte Press for letting me read an advance e-arc of this book for my honest review.

How to Make Friends with the Dark

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