Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I adored The Overdue Life of Amy Byler, which surprised me a little because on the surface I have nothing in common with Amy. I chose this book from First Reads because of the title. I’ve felt like my life was “overdue” a time or two, and thought I might be able to relate. And I did. The main theme of the story—being you—is pretty universal and that’s what made me love this book. Amy has done a pretty good job of creating a life for herself and her two children after her husband shakes up the family by leaving, but doesn’t fully realize that for her at least, it’s more existence than living. It takes another big shake up to help her see this, and find the way to actually live her life. Kelly Harms has done a good job of making Amy relatable, even to people who don’t have much shared experience with her. She does this by making her main character flawed, uncertain, confident and then not, and afraid, all conditions everybody has experience with. There were a few times where Amy got on my nerves—mostly when she claimed she had “deserted” or “abandoned” her children, which to me is a ridiculous accusation—if she had stayed home, she still wouldn’t have been with the children. But these times were infrequent and not a huge distraction One of my favorite things in this book is the wonderfully creative sign-offs Cori came up with in her journal entries. As I read them, I found myself trying to guess how she would sign off, though of course, I never came close. I sat on the sofa all day reading this book and am a little sad it’s over. I will definitely read another book by this author.