National Book Award Winner, PEN America Award Winner, and New York Times Bestseller!Perfect for fans of This Is Us, Robin Benway’s beautiful interweaving story of three very different teenagers connected by blood explores the meaning of family in all its forms—how to find it, how to keep it, and how to love it.Being the middle child has its ups and downs.But for Grace, an only child who was … child has its ups and downs.
But for Grace, an only child who was adopted at birth, discovering that she is a middle child is a different ride altogether. After putting her own baby up for adoption, she goes looking for her biological family, including—
Maya, her loudmouthed younger bio sister, who has a lot to say about their newfound family ties. Having grown up the snarky brunette in a house full of chipper redheads, she’s quick to search for traces of herself among these not-quite-strangers. And when her adopted family’s long-buried problems begin to explode to the surface, Maya can’t help but wonder where exactly it is that she belongs.
And Joaquin, their stoic older bio brother, who has no interest in bonding over their shared biological mother. After seventeen years in the foster care system, he’s learned that there are no heroes, and secrets and fears are best kept close to the vest, where they can’t hurt anyone but him.
Don’t miss this moving novel that addresses such important topics as adoption, teen pregnancy, and foster care.
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This is the story of three siblings – Grace, Maya, and Joaquin. All three adopted when they were very young, they have no idea the other exists until Grace decides – as a teenager who just had a baby of her own – to hunt for her biological family. She is an only child until she finds Maya – her biological younger sister and Joaquin – her older brother. All three had been searching for where they belong and finding each other brings all kinds of feelings to the surface that they will work through together. All of them have loving adoptive families who have their backs while they work out their new normal together.
This was a pretty good book. It was a quick listen and the writing was good. Maya is witty with some pretty good lines. There was a BIT too much drama, but with such a quick read, it didn’t bother me much. I liked the idea of the story and how they painted adoption in a positive light along with the realities of what that means for the child who was adopted.
Check this one out – you won’t be disappointed.
This is the most I cried for a book.
I’m weak for family-oriented books!!!
Such a fun and emotional story. Vivid characters who you just want to wrap in a blanket and take care of.
I legit finished this book in a weekend, and boy did I cry a lot while reading this.
This story of adopted siblings finding each other in their teens had me completely gripped. The characters are so brilliantly drawn, I can’t quite believe they’re not actually real. A beautiful book, full of heart.
I loved how the author used different perspectives and how they made it so realistic, even if the characters were fictional.
A really lovely book that I thoroughly enjoyed.
Three adopted siblings, separated from birth, find each other. Wonderful book
If you like stories about found families and life’s beautiful messes, authentic voices of teenagers, and openly crying in public because you were listening to the audiobook in the car and didn’t realize how emotional you’d get, I highly recommend this fantastic teen/YA novel.
Buying a physical copies to put on the shelf for when my kids are ready to read this level of book.
I really loved this book! The characters are flawed but realistic and relatable. The core of this book is family in its various forms.
What an amazing book. This is a truly beautiful story about family, no matter if their blood or not, whether you choose them or not. I devoured this book in one day. I couldn’t get enough. I loved every single thing about this book and wanted more. The writing was beyond beautiful, the story warms your heart and had me shedding more than a little tears. It was written to perfection. I loved that Robin attacked issues head on like adoption, race, acceptance, sexuality, teen pregnancy, parenthood, and family.
Each of these characters stories touched me. I loved how close they got to one another and the bond that only siblings can have. They were each instantly protective of the other and relied each other when things in their lives were falling apart. That connection really made me love this book. They each battled with demons of being given up by their biological mother and the constant reminder that their adopted. But Joaquin was the one I loved the most. He had it harder than his sisters because he was never truly adopted and went from one family to the next. But when he is placed with a family who truly loves him, it scares him. His story brought me to tears and I was choked up every time I read his chapter.
This book is so beautiful and often times emotional. This is one of the most amazing YA contemporary novels I’ve ever read. I highly recommend this book because it needs to be read. This story needs to be shared. I look forward to reading more work by Robin Benway.
Far From the Tree by Robin Benway is a coming of age story between three siblings. Each one has grown up differently and are dealing with difficult family circumstances. The siblings find each other at that crucial time when they need each other the most.
I know that is a short and info lacking description of this book, but I’m sticking to Hannah’s style of review for this one. After watching her video review, I knew I wanted to read this book. I went into it knowing nothing about it or even reading the premise. And I’m so glad I did.
That’s probably the best way to read this book. It focuses on so many family issues and regular life struggles. This isn’t a YA book where the characters are so philosophical they are hardly believable. These characters are REAL, they’re RAW, and that’s the beauty of this book.
After reading Far From the Tree, I doubt I will truly enjoy what other YA novels have to offer.
Far From the Tree by Robin Benway receives 5 stars.