13 Ways to Say Goodbye
by Kate Fussner
Middle School    Harper/HarperCollins    304 pp.
3/25    9780063256989    $19.99

In this introspective verse novel, American narrator Nina spends the summer with her aunt in Paris, as her whole family used to do regularly; the visits stopped three years earlier after Nina’s older sister, Lily, died in a bicycle accident. Nina intends to complete Lily’s unfinished “13 Before 13” list before her own thirteenth birthday at the end of the trip. As she crosses off items (which range from “eat a food I’ve never heard of before” to “first kiss”), visions of moments from her sister’s life appear, revealing aspects of their not-always-perfect relationship. Lily complained that Nina was a copycat, and Nina’s arc of finding what she needs now for herself is both poignant and hopeful. Those needs include more open discussion of the family’s loss with her parents as well as openness about her attraction to other girls (and the summer includes the sweet, tentative beginnings of a romance with Sylvie, a girl in her art class). Accessible free verse keeps pages turning, with variations in line breaks and placement on the page helping to pace emotion and, especially, introduce the more fantastical moments. A touching portrait of a preteen in a particular, sad situation whose coming-of-age journey may resonate more broadly.

From the ">May/June 2025 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.