Edward is the sole survivor of a plane crash. His whole family was on that plane. Now, he must live with his aunt and uncle. He spends weeks in the hospital. Everyone wants to see him, touch him, talk to the miracle boy. Family members of the victims want to know if he remembers seeing their loved ones. Edward feels as though he is still on that plane. Stuck in the air. He struggles to come to terms with what has happened. Through the story, we learn about some of the other passengers on the plane. About their lives and the people, they leave behind. Eventually, Edward and his friend stumble on something his uncle was keeping from him and it helps him find purpose in his life.

My most favorite thing to do is NOT flying, I'm a nervous passenger so I was a little worried about reading this book. However, the storyline wasn't as much about the crash as it was about the little boy and his life after the crash.

It was so hard to read in places, his sadness and grief was just heartbreaking, but the author did such a wonderful job of conveying that sadness and grief, it broke my heart. There was happiness too, I just wanted more happiness.

I think it was realistic and believable, it's unfortunate the author was unable to talk to the real boy, the inspiration for this book. Having not been able to do that and having not ever been in this position, I think she did a great job with the storyline, narrative and development of the little boy.

What a devastating story but so beautiful. I read this quickly and did not want to put it down. The writing is complex and haunting and I look forward to Napolitano's future novels. Thanks for the advanced copy of this.

One summer morning, twelve-year-old Edward Adler, his beloved older brother, his parents, and 183 other passengers board a flight in Newark headed for Los Angeles. Among them is a Wall Street wunderkind, a young woman coming to terms with an unexpected pregnancy, an injured vet returning from Afghanistan, a septuagenarian business tycoon, and a free-spirited woman running away from her controlling husband. And then, tragically, the plane crashes. Edward is the sole survivor.

This book is great! Would definitely recommend. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Twelve year old Edward Adler is the sole survivor of a flight from NY to Los Angeles, CA. 183 passengers and a crew of 8 perished along with Edward's parents and his older brother. Hospitalized and eventually recovering from his injuries, the next part, the emotional healing, is sure to be the hardest. How does a young boy like Edward deal with such horrific loss as well as the difficulties of adolescence and still find their place in the world?

Edward is taken in by Edward's mother's sister, Lacey, who is also grieving, dealing with the loss of her sister. Neither she nor her husband John are comfortable talking about their losses. Then there is Edward's therapist, Mike, and his beautiful yet quirky next door neighbor, Shay, who is always there for him when ever he needs a friend to talk to.

The back story alternates between some of the passengers that were on board who came from all walks of life. Edward's story left a lump in my throat at times, I found myself really taken by his story as well as one of the other passenger's story as well - a few others were less interesting to me. Overall, I was happy I tried this one, the writing is excellent and it was expertly narrated by Cassandra Campbell. If you are in the mood for a well written story about trauma, grief, survival, loss and healing, be sure to add this one to your list. Deeply moving.

This novel was difficult to read. The pain that follows Edward after the disaster. It was beautifully written and I have recommended it many times over.

Edward Adler is the 12-year-old sole survivor of a plane crash that killed his parents and older brother. His life turns upside down when he becomes the subject of national interest. His Aunt Lacey and Uncle John try to protect him and find themselves walking on eggshells dealing with his trauma and their own. As Edward emerges from his grief, he feels a sense of responsibility towards the victims of the crash and longs to have connections with each of them. This is an original, beautiful coming of age story that I highly recommend.

The wonderful and somewhat unexpected aspect of this book is its lack of mystery; the key plot point (crash) happens so quickly that the arc of the novel is the slow and painful journey of grief and displacement. Napolitano gives her characters space to feel and in turn invites her readers in to do so as well.

Exquisitely written, this book takes your breath away, breaks your heart and offers hope. The book tells the story of the sole survivor of the crash of Flight 2977, 12 year old Eddie/Edward Adler. In alternating chapters we are with Eddie and his family on the doomed flight and with him after the crash. It is a story of profound losses, survivor guilt and the slow process of healing and continuing to live, even thrive. Beautifully told Edward's story will stay with you long after you close the book. Will be great for book club discussions.

A novel has rarely made me cry with how beautiful it is, but this one has. Do read this book, it's spectacular in every way.

4.5 stars - heartbreaking and gutwrenching and heart warming at the same time. I loved Edward's story and really felt for him and his aunt and uncle. Definitely recommend this book highly!

Inspired by the true story of Ruben Van Assouw, a nine year old boy who, in 2010, was the sole survivor of a plane crash that killed 103 other people, Dear Edward is the coming-of-age tale of Edward Adler, whose fate at age twelve matched that of young Ruben’s. Through this story, we see the impact of survivor’s guilt and the grip of trauma. But it’s not solely a tale of darkness and despair. There is no changing the tremendous loss but Edward is fortunate to have some good supports in his life and, slowly but surely, this book becomes a thing of beauty within the pain.

To say that I adored Dear Edward would be an understatement. Although I rarely reread books, this is something I would gladly digest a second time around.

I loved the fact that the author introduced us to some of the passengers and alternated between scenes on the plane prior the crash and Edward’s life in the aftermath. This was effective in building a level of suspense and in probing at the emotions. The passengers aren’t a bunch of nameless casualties in a story about the sole survivor. We know why they were on that plane. We know some of their thoughts, some of their hopes, and some of their regrets. It was a really powerful form of communication that made the fate of the flight even more heartbreaking.

Dear Edward gives you a lot to think about, in terms of human reasoning and post traumatic stress. Admittedly, these are topics I hungrily consume, which I’m sure made the book work especially well for me. It felt like the author truly understood her subject matter. These nuanced characters all felt wholly human to me.

Another thing that added weight to the impact for me was the author’s writing style. Generally, I am all for flowery language and creative metaphors. This book does not rely heavily on either of those things. It’s very straightforward storytelling, which made the emotion attached to it incredibly raw and real. I could really feel the depth of what was being conveyed and while my heart often cracked, I relished every second of it. This is what I want in a dramatic narrative and I was very satisfied by the reading experience.

Dear Edward is a sobering reminder that the tomorrow we hope for isn’t promised to us. It doesn’t tell us to wallow in hopelessness, though. It reminds us to live and love enough for today.

Not one that I was able to finish. Too much of a slow burn for me. I have tried to come back to it a few times but was unable to get into it.

Edward is the sole survivor of a plane crash. We live his story alongside him from the age of 12 to 18. His strength is immeasurable. I think that we may never know how strong we are until we are right in the middle of the chaos of each day. As a part of Edward's healing, he touches the lives of the other families that were left behind. We meet those that have been lost in the crash alongside his family by way of the families that Edward sets out to meet. A beautiful book.

Even though I did enjoy this book, I found it to be quite slow. Edwards story was so heartbreaking to me, to have lost his whole family.

Dear Edward is a story of grief, loss, healing and hope. The way the story moved between past and present helped me to better understand Edward and the trauma he went through. Despite the large amount of characters in the story, the author's writing style helped us to build connections with many of them. My only wish is that I would have been able to read the replies Edward wrote to some of the victims' families. Dear Edward was a moving story about surviving when you are not sure you have the strength to go on.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this novel based on a true story. Edward is a compelling character, and Napolitano encourages us to get inside his head as he grapples with being the only survivor of a plane crash.

A beautiful and heartbreaking story that made me think deeply about the lives we touch and the effects we can have on other people. I loved the different cast of characters who were passengers on the plane and thought it was a beautiful illustration that, no matter which walk of life we come from, we're all just human. It left me with much to think about and ponder.

This book was a great read on personal growth, the idea of why we are or are not chosen, and the notion of just being lucky at times.

I enjoyed the back and forth of the past and present views. The growth of the characters throughout the story was positive and enjoyable. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a happy ending from a tragedy.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced copy!

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with this ARC. Imagine you, out of 191 people, are the lone survivor of an airplane crash. Now imagine you are a 12 year old boy, who was traveling with his parents and 15 year old brother to start a new life in California. Dear Edward tells about the boy’s quick transfer to his aunt and uncle’s guardianship and continues switching back to the last few minutes of the flight and then forward through the following six years as Eddie, now Edward, learns to cope with the tragedy in many ways.