Things in life rarely are, but heartbreak, sadness, and loneliness are especially so. First: There is no one singular valid way to experience or process grief. As they get to know the circumstances of each other’s lives, the readers are shown the many different ways loss and grief can occur, as well as the equally numerous ways there are to handle it.Ībove all, I think Clues to the Universe succeeded in driving home two major points about grief. When their paths cross thanks to an accidentally swapped folder, Ro and Benji make a deal to help each other with their respective projects. Benji on the other hand suspects that his father is the author of his favorite comic book Spacebound and uses it to try and track him down. Ro tries to build the rocket her father promised her they’d make together, in an attempt to send some of her father’s things into space. The two kids handle their grief over their absent fathers in different ways. Meanwhile, Benji’s father has left their family to pursue a career in the arts. Ro’s father was killed in a car accident. Both our main characters, Ro and Benji, are struggling with the grief of parental absence. Let me tell you why this book needs to be next on your TBR!Ĭontent Warnings: Grief, death of a parent, neglectful parent/parental abandonment, bullyingįirst and foremost, Clues to the Universe really is all about grief and the different ways to process it. I found myself smiling and crying throughout, and just generally having a good time. So knowing all that, I knew Clues to the Universe was going to be an amazing read for me.Ĭhristina Li definitely did not disappoint! I devoured this book in less than two days (while also consuming around two bottles of wine because I was on vacation, but that’s neither here nor there) and enjoyed every minute of it. I also love fiction that deals with the vagaries of growing up and learning who you are, especially through the lens of the Asian experience.
I’m a huge fan of quiet fiction – the kind where the conflict is more internal, and the stakes are important but not quite “saving the world” level. I hadn’t read it yet, but the synopsis sounded like it would be right up my alley. Most notably my roundup of excellent MG books written by Asian authors which I did for API Heritage Month. I’d already mentioned Clues to the Universe in blog posts on here before.
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