All the Ugly and Wonderful Things: A Novel [B0351]

2017 PB in great condition. A beautiful and provocative love story between two unlikely people and the hard-won relationship that elevates them above the Midwestern meth lab backdrop of their lives. As the daughter of a drug dealer, Wavy knows not to trust people, not even her own parents. It's safer to keep her mouth shut and stay out of sight. Struggling to raise her little brother, Donal, eight-year-old Wavy is the only responsible adult around. Obsessed with the constellations, she finds peace in the starry night sky above the fields behind her house, until one night her star gazing causes an accident. After witnessing his motorcycle wreck, she forms an unusual friendship with one of her father's thugs, Kellen, a tattooed ex-con with a heart of gold. By the time Wavy is a teenager, her relationship with Kellen is the only tender thing in a brutal world of addicts and debauchery. When tragedy rips Wavy's family apart, a well-meaning aunt steps in, and what is beautiful to Wavy looks ugly under the scrutiny of the outside world. A powerful novel you won't soon forget, Bryn Greenwood's All the Ugly and Wonderful Things challenges all we know and believe about love.

From recent Amazon/GoodReads reviews: "I'm still unsure how I feel about this book. I loved it, yet I also hated the story-maybe because it felt so real. It definitely challenged my sense of morality. This is the kind of book that forces you to examine your morals on a deeper level. Is it wrong? Right? Justified? Is it love, or just two similar souls finding each other? Who really knows? All I do know is that I'm glad Wavy had someone safe, even if it made me question my own sense of right and wrong."; "Wow. This was such a gut-wrenching, real, shocking, and beautiful story. The author did a fantastic job commenting on the reality of drug addiction, class, bodily autonomy, and family. Possibly one of my favorite novels ever."; "This book kept me so intrigued. I would've finished it in a day if I could have mentally handled it. This book is sad, rough, and extremely triggering. Not a lot of books make me cry, but this one did. Please look into what this book is about before reading. I am not happy with how it ended, but I don't regret reading it either. It reminds us that these horrific things unfortunately do happen in real life."