When Tommy turns one and his parents wake up to an unkown baby in their home, he is sent to a foster care home. Except on his second birthday when he wakes up, nobody remembers him there either. It seems each year on his birthday he resets. After the reset, nobody remembers him, or what he has done. When he falls in love, he knows he needs to make it so she won’t forget him this January 5th…

So I was originally intrigued by this one because I adored Addie Larue. I can’t decide if I would want to have a full year of people knowing me and then forgetting me, or have people never remember me from the start. I kind of feel like I would prefer to be Addie. Either way, I cannot imagine waking up and being completely forgotten by everyone. I loved this story and how Tommy worked to make his life go as seamlessly as possible between January 4th and 5th each year. This is the kind of book, with just a hint of magic of fantasy that I just love so much. If you liked Addie Larue, I highly recommend grabbing a copy of this book!

I had high hopes for this book but the characters fell flat for me. I could never get into this at all. Sadly i did not finish.

I received a digital ARC from Sourcebooks Landmark via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

I loved Tommy and the other characters in this story. Everyone was well drawn out. However, at times the story seemed a bit long. I loved the ending, and wish the reader got to spend even more time with Tommy, and Carey. I think if readers enjoy novels by Catherine Ryan Hyde, they will enjoy this one, too. I look forward to reading more from Michael Thompson in the future.

Every year on Tommy's birthday, he is forgotten. His parents, his foster family, friends, even the girl he falls in love with, everyone forgets him. I cannot imagine my life if every year on my birthday, I would be alone and forgotten. This was a heartbreaking story at parts but I loved the characters and the magical realism. It is a very good book to get lost in. I received an advanced readers copy and all opinions are my own.

“...some people were just meant to be friends“

How would you live your life if every year on your birthday, everyone you cared about forgot you even existed?

## Plot Summary

*How To Be Remembered* follows the life of Tommy Llewellyn, who wakes up every year on his birthday to find that nobody remembers him. He just wants to be normal, to be remembered.

It begins with an introduction to Tommy’s parents and follows his life into adulthood. His childhood spent in Milkwood House, fortunate to have caring guardians. Well… as fortunate as his situation allowed. As Tommy matured into adulthood, formed friendships and even love, his predicament grew to be unbearable. A chance encounter with a story he had handwritten, unsigned and without a trace of his name, led Tommy to concocting plans throughout the years to test the ‘loophole’ before each annual ‘reset’. His sheer determination to leave a legacy and be in the lives of his loved ones, even though they did not much remember him, drove his resourcefulness to get through each birthday and start anew.

Each reset conjured feelings of hopelessness at the thought of Tommy’s life again disappearing into an unknown ether. A story of youthful optimism, willpower and hope against an incomprehensible element.

## Praise & Critique

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and was drawn in from the start. The way each character was introduced, no matter their significance in the story - from Tommy’s parents, the policeman, Miss Michelle, Sean, Carey, the nurses, Josh, Richie, and everyone in between - set the scene and a familiarity which helped me vividly picture them in my mind's eye. I particularly enjoyed the omniscient viewpoint.

One character whose part in the story seemed diluted was Richie’s. The early chapters alluded to him playing a bigger part, although one could argue he does, his reappearances felt more of convenience than a meaningful way to move the story along. On another note, had his part been expanded, the story may have needed a different conclusion. Nevertheless, whether or not he is aware of it, Thompson has a gift for creating a sense of foreboding. I hope he considers exploring ominous elements in future stories.

"How To Be Remembered" is well-crafted with just the right amount of dialogue peppered in to help your imagination along. It’s easy to forget this is the author’s first foray into fiction!

## How It Enriched My Life

I’m not entirely sure I’d have been as doggedly determined as Tommy had I been in similar situations. I guess, it is a reminder that with tenacity and a dash of imagination even the most dire situations have a way out.

This book took me back to the days when I was studying creative writing. I was called in to recall the elements that were so masterfully put together in this story. It has been awhile since I’ve read a story that urged this type of reflection.

## Who Should Read It

If you enjoy stories of hope, perseverance, magical realism elements and contemporary settings, it’s definitely one for the read list. It would suit someone who appreciates character-driven stories with descriptive writing over someone who prefers continuous action or drama.

## Similar Books

*The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August* by Claire North, *The Memory Police* by Yoko Ogawa, and *The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue* by V.E. Schwab. These stories also deal with themes of memory and legacy-building, and protagonists who face extraordinary obstacles in their lives. Also, ”The House of the Spirits" by Isabel Allende and "Like Water for Chocolate" by Laura Esquivel, which use magical elements to explore themes of family, love, and identity.

How to Be Remembered by Michael Thompson feels like a modern fairy tale. This foray into magical realism has garnered comparison to The Invisible Life for Addie LaRue. It is a coming of age story of a man seeking to make his mark on the world and live connected, despite fighting against all odds as the world forgets his existence only for him to begin from scratch each year on his birthday.

While starting at the beginning absolutely sets up the conceit of the universe’s trickery, I appreciate that Thompson walked us through the journey of Tommy growing up with this timer ticking on repeat. Going on this journey gives the reader an ability to see and understand Tommy- the choices and events and relationships that shape him- a secret just for the reader since the leading character cannot share this same intimacy with the people around him when he starts over each year.

Thompson’s plot is unique, and Tommy’s resilience and innocence make him an endearing hero. Beyond the premise, though, the voice of the narrator is where this book really shone for me. While I see all of the comparisons to V.E. Schwab’s Addie La Rue, the narrative style reminded me in a really lovely way of Pushing Daisies, one of my favorite cult tv shows that died amidst the 2007 Writer’s strike. Narrated by Jim Dale, it centered on a young man whose life was utterly bizarre by no choice of his own and chronicled with an omniscient voice the quirks and heartbreaks of wanting to be normal when you are anything but. This omniscient narrator gives a tell-all that feels similarly reminiscent of Le Fablaux destin d’Amelie Poulain- giving readers a sneak peek at some of the most charmingly mundane corners of this magical story.

At times, I struggled with the pacing of the story, which seems like a natural consequence of the span of time and amount of growth and adaptation that Thompson undertakes with Tommy Llewellyn.

A big thank you to Sourcebook Landmark and NetGalley for bringing my attention to this read.

CW/TW: attempted suicide mention of someone who died of cancer (both side characters)

Tommy’s no ordinary kid. His life started out as normal - a happy, healthy baby with two loving parents living in suburbia. His parents are all gearing up to celebrate his first birthday. The morning of, his parents don’t know him. Every connection to him physical and emotional is erased. this pattern for the rest of his life - he falls asleep on his birthday and when he wakes up no one remembers him. Every evidence of his existence disappears. He lives most of his life in a home, becoming more adept at navigating whatever this ‘ailment’ is as he gets older. He wants normalcy and is motivated thanks to a girl he falls for and a best friend he meets. He wants these people in his life. He wants to be remembered.

The thought of Tommy being forgotten during the baby and toddler years had me reeling. How awful! I felt better as he as he got older and went from being completely helpless to noticing the accidental loopholes in the Reset, as he called it, and worked them to his advantage.

This will go down as one of the more unique storylines I’ve read this year. It was emotional watching Tommy have to reconnect with people he’s known all along from scratch every year and latch onto all those things he held dear. It’s also kind of a subdued read because Tommy himself is rather subdued. I consider this in the same vein as 𝗗𝗮𝗿𝗸 𝗠𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿, 𝗜𝗻𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗟𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗔𝗱𝗱𝗶𝗲 𝗟𝗮𝗥𝘂𝗲 or 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗠𝗶𝗱𝗻𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗟𝗶𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗿𝘆 - all three of which I enjoyed. Tommy’s story is not one I’ll forget anytime soon. He is remembered.

Thanks to @netgalley & @bookmarked for my ARC. This is my honest review. 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗕𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 is out now!

“He knew there was something different about him, something uniquely…wrong. Normal kids don’t wake up each year as a stranger in their own lives, their entire existence wiped clean from the planet, the same way he arrived at class each morning to find the previous day’s lessons scrubbed from the chalkboard.”

If a book has anything related to time manipulation in it, the chances are high that I’m going to want to read it, so I jumped at the opportunity to grab this one as an advanced reader copy! This isn’t time travel or time manipulation in the form we usually see it; it’s more a journey to outwit a combination of time and memory. It has vibes that reminiscent of Addie LaRue meets Oona Out of Order, with several interesting characters and plot points that make it unique and different.

Every year on his birthday, the main character goes through what he later calls a “reset,” where all traces of his existence seem to be wiped from the universe. His loved ones forget him, his possessions disappear, and he has to start over from scratch. This could have been an utterly depressing story, but there are humorous and triumphant and sweet moments that provide levity and loveliness to the book.

I loved reading Tommy’s story, watching as he fumbles through this strange hand that life has played him. There are moments of naïveté, utter brilliance, and sheer determination and strength of will. I couldn’t help but hope for him to succeed as the clock approached each reset.

This was a fantastic debut from Aussie author Michael Thompson, and I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for his future works.

Thanks so much for the advanced readers copy, Sourcebooks and Netgalley!

What a moving book! This will be big for fans of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue — the concept is relatively similar.

Every year on his birthday, Thomas is forgotten. His existence is completely wiped from the world. His possessions are gone, he loses his friends, and has to start from scratch. How to be Remembered takes you from Thomas’s birth, all the way through to adulthood. The character progression is great, and I really found myself rooting for Tommy and feeling just as nervous before each Reset as he did. I think emotions were really well done in this book, too.

While we didn’t get much of an explanation, we have no idea why the Reset happens each year, I don’t think I felt like I needed it so much. The ending was satisfying enough without it, which is impressive itself.

I ended up giving this one 4 stars!

Thoroughly enjoyed this book! Ever wondered how you would survive in a world that forgets you every year? Tommy's story grants us an in depth look at the lengths one would have to go through. The pain that one has to carry when those you cherish forgets who you are, and the great feats and effort that it takes to try to find some sort of normalcy in life. Thanks Netgally.

I was so confused at the start of this book. I found the whole plot to be a bit confuising. After reading some other reviews I kind of understood what was going on, though. I would have liked a bit more depth to the writing instead of just going from one event to the next. This was a solid debut and I'm interested in more from this author!

I would like to thank Net Galley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the opportunity to read this book as an ARC. Tommy Llewellyn will be one year old tomorrow. His parents have planned a small party. The party will not happen because on January 5th, his parents will not remember Tommy. Tommy is destined to be forgotten every year on his birthday. As he falls asleep. every trace of him is removed . All he has is what is on his body, and that is it. People he saw yesterday , do not remember him today. Tommy is placed in foster care( every year), and he slowly comes to grips with himself and what he calls his Reset. He develops work arounds to have a semblance of life. He has friends, ones that he has to remake every year. And then there is Carey, a girl he meets in foster care, who he knows he needs to find some day.This book is a little Midnight Library and the Invisible life of Addie Le Rue, with a little bit of Oona out of Order thrown it. It is a very interesting premise. Some of the characters are well written and engaging, others not so much. ( I am still trying to puzzle out just who or what Richie is - happenstance, a deliberate sign from the universe, the devil- just do not know).It is an interesting book, with a good premise. At times, it was funny, other times sad, often perplexing.It is the debut novel of the author . I will look for his work again.

Leo and Elise Palmer have a great life plan. They wiuld work hard, get married, and then start having children. Well, not everything goes as planned when they have a child together, who they named Tommy. When Tommy turns 1, Leo and Elise wake up not knowing how this baby came into their apartment. They immediately call the police and even the police find their story a little strange, but they believe the couple and put Tommy in foster care.

Year after year, you learn more about Tommy’s struggle with the Reset the day of his birthday.

When he gets a bit older, Tommy meets a girl named Carey, who is in the same foster care. Tommy has a huge crush on Carey. Sadly, Carey is struggling a lot and contemplates ending her life when Tommy comes to her rescue and saves her from doing something she can’t take back. When the Reset happens, he is forgotten again.

Tommy is heartbroken that Carey doesn’t even remember he saved her life. Tommy in that part of the story is replaced by someone else. Shortly after, Carey leaves foster care and Tommy.

Year after year, Tommy tries different ways to see if his current life will carry over after the Reset and he finds a loop hole! Whatever Tommy is holding, it follows him in the Reset. After years of trying, he slowly figures out how to live his life better than the previous year.

Will Tommy ever be able to have a “normal” life with a job, wife, and kids? Will anyone ever remember him after the Reset that happens every year?

I enjoyed reading this book and it was really interesting to see where the story was going to go and what fills in to replace Tommy after ever Reset. I did think it
was a bit slow-ish (for my liking), but it really just shows the struggle that Tommy was having with his life.

Tommy is forgotten every year on his birthday and he grows up rebuilding his life from scratch every year. Even though this book is marked as Addie LaRue’s and Midnight library’s child it is such a unique take on one’s life and place in the world.

I was intrigued from the start, following Tommy as he builds resilience and goes through obstacles the Universe has given him. The author seamlessly takes readers through emotions from needing to turn page after page and sharing for Tommy to being sad for and with him.

The narrator is omnipresent instead of one (Tommy’s) or multiple POV, and I loved that. I feel everyone is writing books from someone's perspective, so this felt like a breath of fresh air. It felt more reliable and realistic and factual knowing that the story is being presented for the reader instead of going through characters' internal and possibly not knowledgeable or intentionally incorrect thoughts. This left readers solely focused on Tommy’s unique experience learning how to beat the odds.

Inspiring and thought-provoking debut novel.

Thank You @netgalley and @bookmarked for this amazing book!

What a book. How To Be Remembered really forces you to confront the difficulties of a fresh start, especially when that fresh start entails a complete reset of your entire life and accomplishments. It was interesting to follow a character who was routinely erased from the mind of his loved ones while simultaneously being given glimpses of what his loved ones would have thought of him, had they remembered.

I loved the way this book dealt with time skips, it was interesting to realize a decade had passed while Tommy had maintained a sort of internal stasis- really hammering home how difficult maintaining progress was for him.

My only wish for this book was that they had addressed the weather! I spent a good amount of time reading trying to figure out where the book was set, and why Tommy wasn't concerned about having all of his belongings (including a winter coat) disappear in the middle of January. It wasn't until I discovered that the author was Australia that I realized it probably wasn't set in Canada and the weather would be inverse.

A fantastic story that I would recommend to anyone!

Thank you to Michael Thompson and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for this review!

What a fantastic book! It's along the same vein of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue. The main character, Tommy, goes through what he calls "the Reset" every year on his birthday. Nobody remembers him. Any trace of his existence is wiped clean and he has to put his life back together every year.
He thinks that he'll never have a normal life...until he starts figuring out there just might be loopholes.

I was impressed with the cleverness of this book. The writing was good but the creativity of the story line was even better. I kept reading, waiting to find out how he overcame his latest obstacle.

[arc review]
Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.
How To Be Remembered releases June 27, 2023

Every year on Tommy’s birthday since he’s been one, he’s gone through a “reset” — where everyone that had any prior knowledge of him had his existence wiped from their memory, and all physical evidence of his existence vanished as well, only leaving behind what was on his body/in his pockets.

Going into this, my expectations were too high because I’ve been trying to chase that high of <I>The Invisible Life of Addie Larue</I>, and that’s definitely on me.

At times it felt like there was little room for growth with all of the resets and essentially getting the exact same job position or housing situation, because it was familiar and comfortable for Tommy.
Though it does pick up some intrigue once Tommy experiments with tangible ways of leaving more of a mark, or keeping more physical belongings.

Towards the end, I was getting real worried that there wouldn’t be a happy ending, and I was starting to feel so defeated for Tommy, but luckily everything managed to work out and I loved how Tommy and Carey found a routine that worked for their little family.

cw: hit by a car, suicide attempt, mentions of dementia, domestic violence, miscarriage

I received a copy of this ARC from Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Wow. Talk about feeling all of the feels. Excuse me while I grab a box of tissues. This story will have you feeling literally EVERY emotion. And unlike what Tommy has to deal with, you will always remember him, even past the RESET.

This book definitely carries a slightly similar vibe to The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue and I’m totally here for it. In this novel Tommy is wiped in every possible way from the memory of everyone on his birthday each year, also known as the RESET day. This is gut wrenching to read through during the first years of his life because you just hurt for this poor tiny little boy. Oh how my heart hurt for him.

But Tommy starts to figure out ways to outsmart the RESET in tiny little bites. But can he outsmart it forever?

Read this story to find out. Ahhhh it’s so freaking good. Man, I’m on a roll. I’ve read two ARCs in a row that have been awesome. Fingers crossed the next one lives up to them

Trigger warnings: suicide towards the beginning

What would you do if no one ever remembered you, and you could leave no record of your existence, but you retained everything? This book starts with the unique idea that everybody forgets a certain person every year. It is a fresh concept, and poor Tommy experiences this grief from the very beginning. When Tommy is a newborn baby, his own parents do not know how he got into their home. To complicate things, anything relating to Tommy, including records of his birth, disappear with the memory of him.

Tommy ends up in a foster home and meets people who will impact his future greatly. When he is a child, he must figure out how to keep a roof over his head. As a teenager, he discovers some small loopholes to what he calls his “reset” that happens on his birthday. Reading how this plays out is fascinating. Readers will sympathize with Tommy and wonder how he could possibly escape this unfair fate. While Tommy grows to care about people, and they care for him back, they will soon forget that he ever existed. It is easy to feel his pain at losing people regularly.

To complicate things, once he is eighteen, how will he support himself? There is no record of his birth and no one to vouch for him. Tommy gets creative. Another issue is that he has loved Carey for years, but of course, like everyone else, she forgot about him. This won’t stop Tommy from racking his brain to trick fate.

When he accidently comes across his father, Tommy must decide if he wants to approach him. He is constantly bothered by difficult decisions, which bring out cleverness in him.

There is a suicide attempt in the novel, so those who would be triggered by this should be aware that this takes place here.

Friendship, family, and loneliness are treated with respect in this book. The writing is a realistic view of how a young man deals with an impossible situation and follows Tommy’s struggle for decades. The paranormal aspect adds a magical touch to the tale, making it stand out among other books.

This is an entertaining story, a page turner. The only improvement could be that it needed to describe why this was happening to Tommy. It ends on a surprising note and is well worth the read. A general audience who appreciates a fun book with depth, an exploration of relationships within the context of unusual circumstances will probably enjoy this book. Five stars.

How to be Remembered is about Tommy Lewellyn, a boy who is forgotten every year on his birthday. While this instantly brings to mind The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, these two books could not be more dissimilar.

After his first birthday, Tommy is placed into a group home for children without families. It is a loving place that accepts Tommy year after year. Then when he is fourteen years old, he falls in love with another resident, one that forgets him after his next birthday. Tommy is determined to make a place for himself in a world that forgets him.

The book is, for the most part, very well written. The characters are vivid, and the settings stick in your mind. Except for the unnecessary, random, and frequent POV changes, I loved the writing style.

Tommy is what you could call a cinnamon roll character. You can’t help but love him, and everyone does love him. Year after year after year. This brings me to my main problem with the novel. It has no conflict. Everything is so easy. I wish my life is as easy as Tommy’s, and I am not forgotten over and over again. Also…in the end of the novel, there is a situation (I won’t spoil it) that makes no sense considering that Tommy’s own parents forgot about him on his first birthday. The very people who contributed to his genetic makeup.

I am also not a fan of writing fantastical elements into books and just expecting readers not to question them or take them at face value. Why was the fact that Tommy forgotten never really more than a passing question? I think exploring this would have been more interesting.

I do think that a lot of people will love How to be Remembered. It is great if you want a light, fun fantasy read. I, however, was left wanting a bit more.