Far from the Tree - by Robin Benway

About the Book

Benway's beautiful interweaving story of three very different teenagers connected by blood explores the meaning of family in all its forms. "The kind of book that strikes close to a reader's heart. Beautiful."--Ally Condie, #1 "New York Times"-bestselling author of the Matched Trilogy.

Book Synopsis

National Book Award Winner, PEN America Award Winner, and New York Times Bestseller!

Perfect for fans of This Is Us, Robin Benway's beautiful interweaving story of three very different teenagers connected by blood explores the meaning of family in all its forms--how to find it, how to keep it, and how to love it.

Being the middle child has its ups and downs.

But for Grace, an only child who was adopted at birth, discovering that she is a middle child is a different ride altogether. After putting her own baby up for adoption, she goes looking for her biological family, including--

Maya, her loudmouthed younger bio sister, who has a lot to say about their newfound family ties. Having grown up the snarky brunette in a house full of chipper redheads, she's quick to search for traces of herself among these not-quite-strangers. And when her adopted family's long-buried problems begin to explode to the surface, Maya can't help but wonder where exactly it is that she belongs.

And Joaquin, their stoic older bio brother, who has no interest in bonding over their shared biological mother. After seventeen years in the foster care system, he's learned that there are no heroes, and secrets and fears are best kept close to the vest, where they can't hurt anyone but him.

Don't miss this moving novel that addresses such important topics as adoption, teen pregnancy, and foster care.

Review Quotes

PRAISE FOR EMMY & OLIVER: "Emmy & Oliver is wonderful. Funny, heartbreaking, and true... just like life. Robin Benway has written characters I felt like I'd known forever, and was so sad to see go. A must read." - Morgan Matson, author of Since You've Been Gone
"Robin Benway writes with her full heart. Emmy & Oliver is a genuinely sweet and funny novel bursting with the inextinguishable forces of love--between parents and children, distant and inseparable friends, new and reunited lovers." - Stephanie Perkins, New York Times bestselling author of Isla and the Happily Ever After Stephanie Perkins, New York Times bestselling author of Isla and the Happily Ever After Stephanie Perkins, New York Times bestselling author of Isla and the Happily Ever After Stephanie Perkins, New York Times bestselling author of Isla and the Happily Ever After Stephanie Perkins, New York Times bestselling author of Isla and the Happily Ever After Stephanie Perkins, New York Times bestselling author of Isla and the Happily Ever After Stephanie Perkins, New York Times bestselling author of Isla and the Happily Ever After Stephanie Perkins, New York Times bestselling author of Isla and the Happily Ever After
"Benway examines split loyalties, the impact of confessionals, and how broken bonds can be mended. Benway's intriguing premise and honest tone are a winning combination as she movingly portrays the growing trust between her characters." - Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"At times heartfelt, funny, irreverent, and ultimately satisfying... a good choice for fans of Stephanie Perkins's Anna and the French Kiss or any of Sarah Dessen's novels." - School Library Journal (starred review)
"Benway fearlessly examines the effects of loss and return from every perspective. Hope, confusion, frustration, and love coexist without shame as teens and parents come to grips with the realization that nothing stays the same no matter how desperately we want it to." - Booklist
"Benway peels away the surface and digs down to the raw emotions the teens and their families feel... as a portrait of the emerging adolescent, it engages." - Kirkus Reviews
"If you've even once wept at NBC's This Is Us, you particularly owe it to yourself to pick this one up." - NPR.org
"A brilliant exercise in empathy." - New York Times Book Review
"Readers will appreciate the explorations of family, stigma, and vulnerability. Benway is looking to follow in the Caroline Cooney footsteps of smart, realism-grounded stories." - Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
"Benway adeptly leads readers through a tale of love, loss, and self-discovery. Expect to cry real tears at this one." - School Library Journal
"A deeply moving novel...The trials the three teens face are always confronted directly and never diminished; their relationships, both new and old, are complicated and beautiful." - Shelf Awareness
"A beautifully written story about the families we're born with and the families we choose, as well as the power -- and potential pain -- of that choice." - Bustle
"A sensitive exploration of what it means to be a family...With an abundance of warmth and humor, the novel continues to circle back to the message that love doesn't require perfection -- that perhaps it reveals itself most fully when we don't quite get it right, but keep trying." - Chicago Tribune
"The book really is something special." - Wall Street Journal
"Emmy's narration is smart and sassy, and the romance plot is satisfying... An unusual blend of a soulmate story, a melodramatic plot, and a realistic book about adjustment, growth, and change, this will please romance fans as well as pragmatic souls with a sentimental streak." - Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
"Far from the Tree is the kind of book that strikes close to a reader's heart. I had to know what happened to Grace, Maya, and Joaquin, and I couldn't turn the pages fast enough. Beautiful." - Ally Condie, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author of the Matched trilogy
"Far from the Tree is a touching story about the strength and love of unconventional families, and the unbreakable bond of siblings near and far. Robin Benway's characters are authentically crafted, full of heart, hurt, and hope." - Brandy Colbert, author of Pointe and Little & Lion
★ "Equally heartwarming and heart-wrenching... Benway (Emmy & Oliver) delves into the souls of these characters as they wrestle to overcome feelings of inadequacy, abandonment, and betrayal, gradually coming to understand themselves and each other." - Publishers Weekly (starred review)
★ "Family issues are neither airbrushed nor oversimplified. From the first page to the last, this compassionate, funny, moving, compulsively readable novel about what makes a family gets it right." - Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"Far from the Tree dives deep into themes of heartbreak and love, and presents a profound, emotional meditation on what it means to be family." - Brightly