What a wonderful book: a heart warming story about an unusual friendship between two lonely people.

I have read and really enjoyed a few other book by Ms Hyde, (my favorite being Take Me With You), so jumped at the chance of an ARC.

The story is mostly happy and uplifting, but a bittersweet at times, with multiple endearing characters. I can’t really imagine anyone not totally loving this story and I highly recommend it!

Thank you to Net Galley.

Catherine Ryan Hyde has been my favorite author from when I was 17 and now in my 30’s. Another beautifully written book with the strongest characters and incredibly moving storyline. Read this! You’ll be so happy you did.

Have You Seen Luis Velez by Catherine Ryan Hyde
Is a very heartwarming novel. I was so impressed that a 17 year old boy, Raymond, would be so nice and helpful to a 92 year old blind woman, Mrs. G. He feels as if he doesn’t belong to his family he has issues with his father’s young wife, who does not like him and lets it known. His father loves his son, but let’s his young wife keep him from having a lot of contact with him.
The story is about divorce, children of mixed marriage, guns, a cat that Raymond rescues and gives to Mrs. G. Raymond try’s to find Velez, Mrs. G. care giver, who had disappeared and left her without any help and out of food. Raymond meets her and takes a liking to her and does everything in his power to help her.
This story is a lesson to everyone of how to help other people in need.
I received an ARC from NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing. Thank you for this wonderful story.

I've read many Catherine Ryan Hyde books and what they all have in common is excellence. Ms Hyde takes a small piece of each of us and works them into her characters. You can always identify with someone in her books.
A teenage boy becomes the unlikely friend of an elderly blind woman in the building where he lives. She is looking for the man who has been helping her...Luis Velez...but is unable to leave the safety of her home. As the back story builds, you find yourself rooting for the characters.
Read this book when you are free from distractions so you can enjoy the artistry Ms Hyde has woven into this story.

One of the best books I’ve ever read. I’m so glad Raymond decided to help Millie. In a a busy world people like Millie often get overlooked and forgotten about. I’m so glad they had each other.

Bestselling author Catherine Ryan Hyde has crafted yet another novel that is destined to be beloved by readers.

Sixteen-year-old Raymond Jaffe's only friend, Andre, is moving to California. On their last morning walking to school together, they descend the stairs in the apartment building where Raymond lives with his mother, stern stepfather, and half-sisters to find an old woman standing in the doorway of her apartment. She is calling out, "Hello?" Raymond notices that even though he is standing right in her line of sight, she seems not to see him. When he acknowledges her, she asks, "Do you know Luis Velez?"

When Raymond returns from school that afternoon, the old woman is again (or still?) in the doorway of her apartment, ringing her hands. When Raymond stops to converse with her, she thanks him for stopping, explaining, "Most people don't stop.." Raymond learns that for more than four years Luis Velez has been helping and checking on her at least three times per week. She asks Raymond if perhaps his family might know Luis and after he assures her that he will inquire, she tells him, "You're a thoughtful young man." For a moment, Raymond freezes, allowing her words to settle over him and savoring the good feeling they inspire. At that moment, Raymond does not know, of course, that his chance encounters with a ninety-two-year-old blind woman will prove to be a life-altering.

Thus begins a friendship and a journey. Raymond realizes that if Luis has stopped checking on Mildred "Millie" Gutermann, she no longer has anyone helping he. He soon learns that Luis was Milie's lifeline. He walked her to the bank and grocery shopping, but since it has been seventeen days since he last checked on Millie, her food supply is precariously low. Thus, Raymond accompanies her to the bank and grocery store, in the process learning not just about how someone without sight navigates the world and maintains a living space free from dangerous obstacles. Raymond takes over the role of caregiver. As Raymond and Millie drink tea and get to know each other, and Raymond's self-perception and outlook begin to change dramatically.

He soon realizes that he is not the same person he was on that fateful morning. And that he must find Luis so that Millie will know exactly why he abandoned her abruptly. There are many individuals named Luis Velez in a large city. Raymond encounters a number of them along the way and makes some new friends in the process. Eventually, he finds his way to the family of the Luis Velez who cared for Millie and learns tragic news. His death effects Millie deeply. She explains that she has known many people who died young, declining to expound further, but wisely tells Raymond, "It would be a filing to recognize that life took Luis away but also brought you to me." Eventually, as their unusual friendship deepens, Raymond learns about Millie's past and the impact that survivor's guilt has had upon her choices and relationships.

Hyde is known for writing stories about the resiliency of the human spirit, as well as the connectedness and sense of community that seems so lacking in America today. Have You Seen Luis Velez? is tender exploration of a most unlikely friendship that transforms two individuals on the opposite spectrum of life. Raymond discovers that helping someone else brings him rewards -- improved self-esteem and relationships with the other important people in his life, as well as the ability to recognize when a friendship is no longer healthy because it does not enhance one's life and it is perfectly acceptable to end it. Millie, the old woman who cannot see, is, ironically, the first person Raymond feels as ever truly seen him, but she helps him understand that perhaps it is he who needs to take a second look at his life and the people in it. And Raymond, through his kindness, brings Millie out of the darkness that has shrouded her life, and helps her to remember that living a long life "is a gift denied to many, and so it comes with a responsibility to make the most of it. At the very least to appreciate it. People gripe about growing older 00 their aches and pains, how much harder everything is 00 as if they had forgotten that the alternative is dying young."

Have You Seen Luis Velez? is also a timely commentary about a modern society in which millions of individuals live in isolation, cut off from each other. Ryan gently illustrates how reaching out to someone in need reaps benefits for both parties, and dispels loneliness and self-recriminations. Ryan's approach is never heavy-handed and her skillful creation of fully developed, realistic and empathetic characters proves her point gently, eloquently, and with great emotional impact upon her readers.

Have You Seen Luis Velez? by Catherine Ryan Hyde is the beautiful story of an unlikely friendship between a seventeen year old boy and his ninety-two year old neighbour. This is a heartwarming read about finding a sense of belonging in a sometimes cold and chaotic world. This novel was a bit of a departure from the genres that I normally gravitate toward, but I am so happy that I took a chance and was so richly rewarded as a result.

Raymond Jaffe is a teenage boy who feels unsure of his place in his own family when he meets his elderly and blind neighbour, Milly Gutermann. Milly seems disoriented when she asks Raymond, 'Have you seen Luis Velez?' She explains that she has been relying on Luis to help her with essential tasks, but he has not appeared to help for many days. Raymond is immediately concerned for his neighbour, and takes it upon himself to try to locate the missing Mr. Velez within the city of New York. The undertaking proves daunting, but Raymond perseveres and meets many of the missing man's namesakes and their families along the way.

This is a feel good story that illuminates many themes, from racial tensions and isolation of the elderly, to the innate goodness that materializes where we least expect it. I have never before read the work of Catherine Ryan Hyde, but hope to indulge in more of her prolific stories in the future. Recommended.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for this wonderful ARC.

Have You Seen Luis Valez is the best book I’ve read in a long time ! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ From me- it’s so relatable and heartwarming- the relationship between Raymond and his elderly neighbor is something this world needs ! Throw in some asexual content, (yes asexual!!!!😳) which is not a common topic and you get an amazing story! I can’t rave about this book enough!! Really I’m at a loss for words- but luckily for the reader Catherine Ryan Hyde is not! Brilliant writing ! Read this - we all need a Raymond in our lives - I’m patiently waiting !
Read this - NOW!

Wow!! I loved this book from start to finish even though I am such a Massive CRH fan I've read many of her books (and think this one tops them all)

This book as well as Catherine's other books deals with real true to life events and situations, and I don't know hoe but she just does it so beautifully, you are immersed in the story along with the characters, she is one of a few authors who can place me right in front of these people visually rather than from my mind's eye.

The book starts with this young 17y.o young man Raymond, who is still in school, his only friend is moving away out of state and because of this he is feeling rather lost and alone, this is until he speaks to and begins to help his 92y.o neighbour Mrs G who is blind and reliant on home help, although her home help hasn't been by in a wee while and this is why she needs Raymond's help.

This start off a budding friendship and a brilliant book! What comes next is just unbelievable I don't want to go into too many details so as not to spoil it for other however just give this book a go.

It's worth it.

Another reason why I think I love this book so very much is that often in books we read things that we know that won't happen really in real life, however this book is so much different not only because the undercurrent of this story is and does happen (racism, gun crime, white privilege, prejudice, racial prejudice, rich/poor class) the main story is often heard in the news also, American's hear of gun crime and death everyday and there's an argument on country laws as whether to change the gun laws and it is that controversial no government seems to want to touch it in terms of just dealing with it and deciding once and for all if there should be more tightening of the laws on guns and this story is a perfect example of just why this is a necessary move to do so.

Too many innocents are dying because of guns.

I live in the UK and right now we have a similar situation with knives and as a country we have asked and been continually asking for tighter restrictions etc on knives, from making sure only over 18's are buying them to more stop and search from the police to get knives off our streets, in the UK knife crime has risen 54% in England alone!

Getting back to the book, this is why I love CRH her books are realistic, they live in the moment and are always relevant to now :)

With thanks to NetGalley for my copy in exchange of an honest review, my review is my own.

It isn’t often that I pry myself away from a book in an attempt to get some sleep already, and yet fail to fall asleep because I keep thinking PLEASE MAKE THIS BOOK A BESTSELLER, GOD, PLEASEEEEE. In fact, this is the first such case. Yes, I have stayed awake because of books before. But I’m not sure I have ever stayed up because I was begging a higher power to make a book a bestseller. Especially with how much I dislike that particular term.*

* I mean, have you noticed that 90% of the authors who follow you on Twitter have “best-selling author” on their bios? And that half the blurbs also claim a book is best-selling..? I mean, yo, we must be living in a damn great selling book world. Somebody just forgot to send me the memo about when we made the transition to that reality.

Anyway, this is one of those books I’d love see as a best-seller. Translated into hundreds of languages. I hope that’s the in the future for Have You Seen Luis Velez, because it absolutely, 100% deserves that. It’s definitely one of the best books I’ve read in the past five years. And here’s why.

But before we even begin, there’s an important thing I have to mention: this book has brilliant ace-spec rep (aro-ace, in this case.) This is rare so I’m just putting it at the very start.

It's About...

One day, when rushing off to school, Raymond meets a really old lady on the stairway of the apartment building who asks whether he’s seen Luis Velez. She is someone most people would walk away from – really old, blind and frail, and because of being blind and looking somewhere far off, at first glance she seems… not all there. But Raymond doesn’t walk away. He comes back and helps. And he’s about to embark on a journey of learning about the world as much as learning about himself. It won’t be easy, but such things never are. Even though Raymond has always been a good, kind kid, he will learn about what it truly feels to be human, and how much it matters to everyone when you’re being the most human that you could ever be. That includes being kind to others, but in the case of Raymond, it also includes being kind to yourself.

It’s About Community, Kindness And Being Human

Have You Seen Luis Velez is a book about so many things! But mostly, it’s about community, kindness and understanding how much we all need each other and how we fail to act on these needs in society, how we fail to be there for others. Among other things, it’s also a coming of age story and I believe it has some things to teach everyone. I’m not sure about its age group, as it is about a 17 year old, but if it could be characterized as YA, it’s certainly one of those that a reader of pretty much any age can enjoy and benefit from. And most of all, it’s a book that’s both sweet and heartbreaking. I cried at the end of Have You Seen Luis Velez, and I almost cried on many other occasions – and I’m not much of a crier. This book has something special, something real, and it just tugs at your heart. But it certainly isn’t just sad. It’s heartwarming, sweet and human in a way where it gives you hope about the world. You’ll actually want to wake up and be alive – alive all the way – after you’ve finished it.

It Discusses Relevant Problems Of Our Time

Have You Seen Luis Velez is a discussion of a lot of societal problems. One of them is how easy it is for one small person to get lost in the cracks of society and how nobody will notice it. How fast we judge about someone and how slowly we remember that we all have basic needs that have to be met. Nobody likes to think about the people who may need help – people who don’t have anyone and are old, disabled or otherwise rendered helpless at taking care of themselves alone, not to mention the problem of loneliness. Have You Seen Luis Velez seeks to draw attention to this problem and tries to inspire us to not walk away, to at least consider helping, being a part of the structures of community that have all but disappeared in our fast age.

The Amazing Characters And Ace Rep

I also want to talk more about the main character Raymond. Raymond is a very kind young man, kinder than most you’ve met, and what sets him apart (and really alienates one from most other young people) is that he cares, he really cares. There are no barriers for friendship for Raymond, so to him it’s perfectly understandable to consider a 92 year old woman a friend. She’s another core character and she is amazing, but I won’t be discussing her in much detail cause I’ll write a whole book of a review if I do. Raymond is shy, kind and different from most, but a wonderful human being. Yet there is a thing that he hides, and it’s something that was really important to me to find in this story, as it’s not found in almost any book these days. Raymond is asexual (to be precise, he is aroace) And he is depicted as kind, loving, sensitive and… realistic. I can’t tell you how rare these things STILL are in books. I was overjoyed to find such amazing rep. More than that, problems of being different are discussed a lot. When Raymond talks with Mrs. G, his 92 year old friend, she tells him that it’s perfectly fine to be who he is, and more than that, that he doesn’t need to be alone if he doesn’t want it. She talks about the fact that families can be anything – it’s also a family if you’re someone’s loving uncle, and that families without sex or children are also valid and they exist. And it’s all talked through in such a nice, compassionate manner – this was the first such book I have ever read. And I absolutely loved it for it.

I said I wouldn’t talk much about Mrs. G, Raymond’s 92 year old friend, but I have to mention at least a couple things. She plays so many important roles in the story, and symbolizes so many things. Of course, she is what essentially moves the story onward, because the first theme is about how she is old, alone, blind and needs help. But it’s so much more than that. As we get to know her, we learn that she is an incredible human being with not even an ounce of prejudice in her, and what’s more, she’s basically Yoda-wise. And despite all this, she comes across as a realistic character too. The first takeaway from this is that we shouldn’t judge a person by their age and looks. But more importantly, she becomes a sort of parable in the story (which is actually even voiced a couple of times) – that despite being physically blind, she is the only one who can truly see – see people for who they are, the world for what it is, and see behind so many things and why they are. It’s an incredible contrast between her, a blind old lady and the choices the able-bodied around her make every day. It’s a wonderful symbol in the story.

Overall...

Overall, l’d say Have You Seen Luis Velez is one of the most important books that I’ve read this year, if not in the past 10 years or so. Catherine Ryan Hyde is now on my auto-buy list, so please recommend other titles from her if you’ve read any! Have You Seen Luis Velez is a book that will speak to everyone about something different, because it’s got so many relevant, important topics in it. And most importantly, I know I’ll never forget it, and I feel like you won’t either. Just grab some tissues when you start reading it.

Triggers include: prejudice against minorities, disabled, old, poor people. Gun violence. Threatening environments, talk of hurting animals (never comes to it thank god). Family disagreements, divorced family. Trial proceedings. Violent death.

I thank the publisher for providing a free ebook copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This has not affected my opinion.

This was not the first book I have read from this author and will definitely not be the last. I love how one simple question has such reaching effects in this book. Raymond must seek out this person and go outside his comfort zone to do so. He grows in friendship with the most unlikely of people and is able to also grow closer to being the man he one day wants to become. There is tremendous heart and a sense of community in this book that is often missing from our world today. Thanks for the ARC, Net Galley.

Interesting feel good life story about helping others and the positive energy coming back to you but I think a few of the underdeveloped issues could have been left out such as Raymond's sexuality and Mrs G being Jewish.

Have You Seen Luis Velez?
by Catherine Ryan Hyde

Have You Seen Luis Velez? by Catherine Ryan Hyde, is a gift to give yourself when the divisiveness and strife of everyday life feels like it is just too much to take. It is the story of a lonely teenager who is drawn to help a very old, blind neighbor he encounters in the hallway of the apartment complex where he lives. The web of relationships that develop from that chance encounter will astound and inspire you.

In many ways, this is a provocative book. It made me reexamine the assumptions we make about others based on age, race, and circumstance. I was also inspired to be grateful for the gift of being alive, and for all those moments of joy that are fleeting because they are not cherished.

Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for giving me the opportunity to read the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. Above all, thanks to Catherine Ryan Hyde for writing such an outstanding story with characters that will live in my heart for a very long time.

I so enjoyed reading this book....to me it was an exceptional book..The story introduces us to Raymond Jaffe, a young high school student who feels as though he is out of place wherever he is, and is unhappy with his family situation. He has one friend, who he finds out is moving away. He attempts to care for a stray, neglected cat, and he stops to help a 92 year old neighbor, who others classify as “crazy” and walk right past her, ignoring her pleas. The friendship that develops between Raymond and “Millie” Gutermann (which is the heart of the story) forms a bond between the two that is priceless to them both. While Millie depends on Raymond to be able to survive in her sightless world, Raymond learns life lessons from the gentle-souled Millie that teach him to open his eyes and his heart to others in order to find his place by first loving himself. He takes great joy in doing some things for Millie that she is not expecting, but that mean so much to her. The story shows there is great hope in people; there is an inner-desire to be better, to do better for others: and it shows the unselfishness of people when differences in people are accepted by others, and prejudice is just a word in the dictionary. Everyone needs to read a book like this to recharge our faith in humanity and to give us a pick-me - up in our attitude. Highly recommend. I received an ARC of this book from the author, NetGAlley and the publisher in return for an honest review, which this has been.

I received this book "Have You Seen Luis Velez?" from NetGalley and all opinions expressed are my own. I loved this book - excellent! So many messages throughout, very inspirational. The writing just flowed and I looked forward to reading this book each day.

This was a beautifully written book. It was full of love, and undying trusting friendship and so much wisdom. It's the story of a young man who befriends and elderly blind lady. They helped each other. She helped him grow to love himself and she needed to be loved. It's a story of courage and kindness. The writing was smooth and flowed well. By far one of the best books I have ever read!

Raymond Jaffe was sad his best friend was leaving. Other than Andre, he had no other friends at school. So when an elderly woman in his apartment block stopped him with a question – “Have you seen Luis Velez?” Raymond spoke to her. Mildred Gutermann – call me Millie – had been alone in her apartment for the past seventeen days as Luis, who helped her with everyday chores, had disappeared. She was down to her last half can of soup which she’d been rationing. Raymond immediately determined he would help her by walking with her to the bank, and the shops for food.

Millie was ninety-two years old and almost blind; Raymond was seventeen-years old and black. There were prejudices on both sides with both of them feeling they didn’t fit where they were meant to. Raymond decided to search for Luis Velez, but he didn’t want to tell Millie until he had a result. So began a time which took Raymond well out of his comfort zone, and he did it for his friend Millie. He also discovered what it meant to have someone believe in him; and the meaning of kindness.

Have You Seen Luis Velez? by Catherine Ryan Hyde has immediately shot to the top of my favourite novels for 2019. What an absolutely delightful feel-good story. The unusual friendship between a 92-year-old woman and a 17-year-old teenager captivated me – the manner in which it was written felt perfect – I was smiling, just enjoying the ride the whole way through. This is my first by this author, but it definitely won’t be my last. Highly recommended.

With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my digital ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.

When it seems like the world is going crazy, and everyone has their own selfish interests, along comes a book which restores hope. Raymond heaRS an old woman calling out and goes to see what is wrong. She explains that she is blind and a man named Luis stopped by regularly to help her get to the bank and shop. He has stopped coming, and Mrs.G is worried. Raymond begins to offer his help, while also searching for Luis Velez. The kindness shown by Raymond, a young man who feels he doesn’t fit in with his family or friends, and the help he receives along the way, is heartwarming. Highly recommended. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

Have you seen Luis Velez by Catherine Ryan Hyde. This is a beautiful story of a displaced teenager, 16 year old Raymond Jaffe, who befriends Mildred Gutermann a 92 year old blind women who is a German Jew who escaped the Holocaust. They live in the same building and Luis Velez is the man who use to come and helped her go to the bank and grocery store, but he stopped coming. What happened to Luis? Find out as their friendship grows. I strongly recommend this wonderful book.

I reviewed a digital arc provided by NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing. Thank you.

This is a delightful story of two very unlikely friends. A 17 year old boy and a blind senior citizen find each other at low points in their life and soon they are fast friends with more in common then they would have every imagined. Its a story of a bringing together of two lost souls who find through their differences they have so much more in common as friends. I found it heartfelt, touching and a very sweet story. .it bring the reader to a place of thought of how we live our insular lives and how much more reaching out we could do to others in our own communities. . I loved this book and enjoyable it very much. it has all the elements of joy, heartbreak, sadness and friendship. It is a good lesson in help others in today's harsh world.

Thank you to the publisher and to Net Galley for the ARC. .My opinion is my own. I highly recommend this book.