How to be Remembered by Michael Thompson

I received a digital copy of this book from NetGalley for review. My opinions are my own.

5/5 stars

I cannot tell you how much I love this book. I cannot wait for it to be released. I believe it will be THE BOOK for book clubs by the end of 2023. There is so much to discuss. It is so well-written. I could go on and on.

Have you ever finished a book and put it down after, closed your eyes, and thought, “oh my God. How do I go on? How do I read another book after this?” This is that book for me.

Tommy is a boy (eventually a man) who is destined to be forgotten. Each year, on his birthday, he is forgotten by everyone who has gotten to know him that year. This book tells the story about how Tommy forges ahead, makes a life for himself, and is ultimately remembered.

A very clever book that first reminded me of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue. Every year on the morning after Tommy’s.birthday no one Remembers who he is. He is literally a stranger to everyone including his parents. Because of this he grew up in an orphanage and had to figure out how to work around this to stay in the home. When Tommy’s an adult he goes into the bar business with a friend he met long ago, and finds the girl of his dreams from childhood, whose life he saved. Life is so precarious for him, trying to refit into his life once a year without losing what he’s accomplished so far, and that does not always go to plan.
The book was interesting and very good until the ending , which was really disappointing as it ended abruptly, leaving the reader hanging with too many unanswered questions, and plots not finished. This changes the book for me from a 5 to a 3.

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks Publishing for allowing me to read this ARC!

How to be Remembered was wonderful. Throughout this book, my heart broke over and over again for Tommy. Tommy is forgotten on January 5th every year of his life. On his first birthday, his parents wake up and have no recollection of him. He is sent to an orphanage where this cycle repeats every year. He learns to adapt but eventually becomes and adult and falls in love.

I loved how unique this story was and how quickly I became invested in the main character. Wonderful debut novel and looking forward to Michael Thompson’s future stories!

“Come and find me”

I don’t think I’ve ever read a book I’ve liked so much but that I’ve also wanted to stop reading at the same time. The concept of this story, similar to that of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, is one of the entire world forgetting your existence. Unlike Addie, our poor MC Tommy gets an entire year, finalizing on his birthday, to get to know everyone around him…before they all forget. Is this better or worse, you ask? Someone forgetting you after knowing them for a year, or forgetting after leaving the room for 30 seconds? As evident by the fact that I was crying 5 pages into the book and basically didn’t stop through the entire read through, I would say the former.

The highs were wonderful. Tommy meeting and befriending Josh, remembering “come and find me” and ACTUALLY DOING IT. Amazing, incredible. Their friendship was everything. The way their whole “arc” ended up—I swear I almost threw the book across the room I was so devastated. It’s difficult to balance sadness with happiness and joy with pain. While it didn’t take it too far by any means, I was just so Livid over how this poor, sweet boy just cannot catch a break. Universe, come on.

At one point, a character describes Tommy’s situation as having a “shadow of impermanence” hanging over it and I can’t help but feel that’s how the whole second half of the book felt. Every time something good happened, I knew right around the corner, something was going to go wrong. Even when Tommy managed to find loopholes, somewhere along the timeline, the Universe managed to screw him over yet again. I know that’s supposed to relate to the MC himself. Obviously he is going through this every year and we are going on this journey with him. Oh it was so heartbreaking, though. I did almost feel like I couldn’t finish this book. The last couple chapters were giving me so much anxiety and I was sure, absolutely sure it was going to end horribly devastating. Thank goodness it didn’t, but there was a few days I couldn’t pick it up for sheer angsty anticipation.

I would still recommend this to friends. Its sad and heartwarming AND heart-wrenching. It’s about perseverance and finding the light in a dark and ever-changing, unfair world. Tommy is a good character who has to overcome a lot of hardship to get to a place where he feels like he can actually have a sustainable life. It’s beautiful. For anyone who wants a good old fashioned tear jerker, this is it.

I LOVED THIS BOOK. It was a masterclass in wonder, charm, frustration, resilience, curiosity, mysticism, and creativity. I particularly loved the constant shift in point of view without obvious page or chapter breaks. I enjoyed being able to view the world from the perspective of each of the characters without having to dedicate time or space beyond immediate observations. Even after finishing the book - AND KNOWING IT IS A BOOK - I wonder how Tommy is doing.

I loved this book and can't wait for another Michael Thompson read.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of this ebook.

How to Be Remembered will have you feeling so many emotions, there is a lot of sadness, but also a lot of hope.

The plot was really interesting and I was so excited to big into this one. The pacing was decent as we learned about Tommy and how he deals with his birthday ‘reset’ every year that makes everyone in his life forget him. But then we got to the end which was too abrupt and left me with more questions than answers.

Poignant yet hopeful, How To Be Remembered follows Tommy Llewellyn who is, strangely, set to be forgotten every year on his birthday and learns to circumvent the Reset as he gets older and works on getting people to remember him. The novel's value primarily (and expectedly) derives from the message it delivers: it's not the material things in life that matter, but the memories of and connections to the people who live at the very centre of our lives that make life worth living without regret.

Thanks to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for providing me with the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Tommy is forgotten every year on his birthday. No one remembers him and all evidence of his existence vanishes. On his first birthday, his parents don't know him and he ends up at a children's home. As he grows up, he learns to adapt and tries to outmaneuver the annual reset. But when he begins a relationship that he doesn't want to end, he has to figure out what to do. This premise was what drew me to the book and it was really well thought out and written, but the characters, especially Tommy, made me love it. This book has been compared to Matt Haig's "How to Stop Time", and it has the same lovely feel of Haig's writing in that novel without the conflict of the murders. It has also been compared to V. E. Schwab's "The Invisible Life of Addie Larue" in that there is a person who is being forgotten, though in Addie's case, it is more immediate. Tommy, on the other hand, has a year to build the life he is losing which adds a different level of complication.

While much of the book is exploring the construct of an annual reset, the narrative has sufficient plot to keep the reader invested in the story. The characters are ones I wish I could spend more time with. An excellent novel I am going to gush about to my friends and patrons. I am so happy to have started out this year knowing Tommy and his friends.

For sure one of the more unique books I’ve read. Tommy “resets” every year. All of his possessions, people’s memories of him, records etc disappear at midnight the night of his birthday. All Tommy wants is to leave a legacy, to be remembered. Heartbreaking and hopeful, How to Be Remembered shows what really is important and we move through our lives

Every year on his birthday, Tommy Llewellyn is forgotten. Literally. Anyone that knew him before forgets him overnight. Eventually, he decides to try to break the curse.

I think it took too long to get to the main plot. The first forty percent or so of the book is him growing up in the children's home and being forgotten every year. The love described in the synopsis is also a minor part of that first half, when it seems so critical based on the description.