No One Here Is Lonely
By Sarah Everett
Knopf Books
February 5, 2019
Grades: 9 and up

No One Here Is Lonely follows high-school senior Eden as she navigates grief, loss, and change. Eden’s best friend Lacey has abandoned her for new friends. Eden’s family dynamics are shifting as well: she discovers that her mom has been cheating on her dad, and this changes her perspective on her parents and on love. In the midst of all this change, Eden takes comfort in speaking to a computer-simulated version of her crush, Will, who died earlier in the school year. She starts a new job at the grocery store, where she makes new friends and becomes closer with Oliver, Lacey’s twin brother. Ultimately, Eden decides that must let go of Will, that she can date Oliver, and, most importantly, that she can make decisions for herself. The story is told from Eden’s perspective, which allows the reader to feel sympathy for her as she processes her feelings of angst and uncertainty. These feelings might resonate with a teenage audience, especially readers who are facing the transition from high school to college and, like Eden, are unsure about what the future holds. When asked about her future plans, Eden is relieved to know that “it’s okay to be lost, that’s okay to not have [her] life plotted out, not to know what [she] love[s] or want[s]. It’s enough to simply be on the way to figuring it out” (209). As the book progresses, Eden develops the confidence to embrace this instability. Despite the book having romantic undertones, it is really about Eden’s self-discovery.