Review: The Survival Kit by Donna Freitas

Title: The Survival Kit
Author: Donna Freitas
Reading level: Young Adult
Hardcover: 368 pages
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR); (October 11, 2011)

Book Synopsis: When Rose’s mom dies, she leaves behind a brown paper bag labeled Rose’s Survival Kit. Inside the bag, Rose finds an iPod, with a to-be-determined playlist; a picture of peonies, for growing; a crystal heart, for loving; a paper star, for making a wish; and a paper kite, for letting go.

As Rose ponders the meaning of each item, she finds herself returning again and again to an unexpected source of comfort. Will is her family’s gardener, the school hockey star, and the only person who really understands what she’s going through. Can loss lead to love?

About the Author: Born in Rhode Island where The Possibilities of Sainthood is set, Donna received her B.A. in philosophy and Spanish from Georgetown University and her Ph.D. in religion from Catholic University. She now divides her time between New York City and Boston. Donna describes herself as an ardent feminist, a Catholic despite it all, an intense intellectual, and a fashion devotee all rolled into one. Much of her writing, teaching, and lecturing centers around struggles of belonging and alienation with regard to faith, particularly among young adults and especially with regard to young women. She loves to ask Big Questions (Why are we here anyway?) and delights in discovering the many possible forums in which to dabble with the stuff of faith, religion, spirituality, and gender. This attitude accounts for her upcoming venture into the world of fiction, since she will see the publication of her first novel, The Possibilities of Sainthood (Frances Foster Books / Farrar, Straus and Giroux)—about a fifteen-year-old girl, Antonia Lucia Labella, who aspires to become the first official living saint in Catholic history.

First Impressions: I was initially drawn to this book when I read the synopsis and seen similar attributes between this book and one of my favorite movies, PS I Love You. They both have very similar concepts and themes so I thought I would really enjoy reading this book.

First 50 Pages: I never read any other books written by Donna Freitas, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. I immediately loved her style of writing and how realistic each of her characters is. The Survival Kit is yet another book with impeccable characters that feel so alive and are easy to relate to. I gobbled up this book in less than a few hours because it was very difficult to walk away from.

Characters/Plot Points/Style of Writing: While the plot isn’t exactly original since it has been done before, like I mentioned earlier in the movie PS I Love You, it wasn’t boring or predictable in the least. The author put her own spin on an old story by using teenagers to play the main characters.

Rose is the main character and she is my favorite as well. Throughout the book, she is trying so hard to pick up her life and reboot after her mother’s tragic death. It’s this constant struggle of trying to seem normal again and it was fascinating to see her progress and how much she has changed by the end of the story. Death is never an easy topic to write about, much less write a good story about, but this author handles that tough topic brilliantly. Each person will handle death differently, and in Rose’s case she puts her whole life on pause. She seemed like the most realistic of all the characters in this story and I was rooting for her to put her life back on track. Rose’s grandmother was a hoot as well. I loved her bluntness and how she always had a way of telling it like it is. She reminded me very much of my own grandmother and I think that is why I enjoyed her character so much.

I loved how the author incorporated music into this story. For anyone who has ever lost someone, hearing songs that remind you of the person you lost can be incredibly difficult. For Rose, listening and enjoying music again is very painful to her and it becomes one of her biggest obstacles in overcoming her grief. It was just another delightful part of this book that felt very realistic to me. When my grandfather passed away, I had a very hard time listening to Eric Clapton’s song, “Tears in Heaven.” It took me a long time to overcome that hurt whenever I heard that song on the radio.

One thing I feel could have been done much better was the growing romance between Rose and Will, her gardener/boy she goes to school with. There were points in the story where I really loved what the author had done with these two characters as a couple, and other points where I had wished the author could have expanded her thoughts.

Final Thoughts: This is an outstanding, touching and realistic story about how to overcome one of life’s hardest obstacles. The author accomplishes this tough obstacle with grace and comes up with this wonderful story. For fans of P.S. I Love You, you need to read this book! It is going to be on my shelves for a long time to come!