I cannot even begin to tell you how thrilled I am to be on the blog tour for Liza Wiemer’s Hello?!!!!!! Liza is a dear friend (we met as a somewhat random encounter!!) and I’ve seen much of the road Hello? took to publication. I am so glad it’s finally here! I’ve seriously been waiting to be able to write a post like this for years!!
About the Book:
One HELLO? can change a life. One HELLO? can save a life.
Tricia: A girl struggling to find her way after her beloved grandma’s death.
Emerson: A guy who lives his life to fulfill promises, real and hypothetical.
Angie: A girl with secrets she can only express through poetry.
Brenda: An actress and screenplay writer afraid to confront her past.
Brian: A potter who sets aside his life for Tricia, to the detriment of both.Linked and transformed by one phone call, Hello? weaves together these five Wisconsin teens’ stories into a compelling narrative of friendship and family, loss and love, heartbreak and healing, serendipity, and ultimately hope.
Told from all five viewpoints: narration (Tricia), narration (Emerson), free verse poetry (Angie), screenplay format (Brenda), narration and drawings (Brian).
My Thoughts:
So, I’ve read Hello? at a few different stages and I loved it every time. Yes, Liza is a friend. Still, if I didn’t love the story I wouldn’t be promoting this book as much as I am 🙂 It’s been such a privilege to watch Hello? grow and change. Liza strives to always improve and I really got to see this as Hello? got closer and closer to publication. As a bonus, Hello? contains my first blurb in a book!
Through love and friendship, choice and fate, the mundane and the divine, Liza Wiemer expertly weaves together five incredibly relatable teen stories. As the characters struggle to reconcile the past and the present, readers take a journey of both heartbreak and hope. With it’s authentic voice and lyrical writing style, Hello? is a strong addition to the genre of contemporary YA. I absolutely loved it!
I stand by that blurb, especially the bit about the voice and lyrical style! There are five different view points in Hello? In some books, that can be hard to follow. Not so here. Each view point is written in a different style, but it’s more than that. Liza gives a unique voice to each character, drawing the reader in to their stories. As their lives intersect more and more readers get to see each character from the perspective of other characters. This paints a more complete picture and ups the readers investment in the story!
And what a story it is!! I love the ways Liza explores fate, “coincidence,” chance encounters, and such. Even though I knew the basics of what happened after reading Hello? the first time, I still found myself looking for all the connections each time I read it. I always love books that weave together different stories making them into one. I was so impressed with the way Liza did this with not one, not two, not three, but five characters’ stories!!!
I could go on and on and on but I really just want you to read this book!!! For real. It’s such a great addition to YA contemporary!
About the Author:
I am the author of two non-fiction adult books, short stories, and newspaper and magazine articles. A pre-school to high school educator now writing YA fiction full time, which I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE! And I’m a diehard Green Bay Packers fan.
For my author posts on writing and my upcoming YA novel HELLO?: http://www.LizaWiemer.com
Unique “job” experiences: I spent a summer selling popcorn in a Koepsell’s popcorn wagon while listening to awesome music on the Summerfest grounds in Milwaukee. I also know my way around a fender and a quarter panel and under the hood of a car. I spent a few years driving to accident scenes, scrapyards, hospitals, auto repair shops as a claims adjuster for an insurance company.
Giveaway:
Tour Schedule:
Liza
Thank you so much, Heidi! Your support throughout this journey has met so much to me! xx, Liza