Over the course of just one night so many of those things, those flaws that make us human, are touched upon. The characters aren’t perfect and neither are their lives. This is a great example of how a contemporary novel doesn’t have to be a “light and fluffy” read. Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between also touches on some deeper topics, ranging from family expectations to the unpredictability of the future. It turns into a night of growth, mistakes, friendship, and love. They spend their last night together going on trips to places that have been important to them or that played a role in their relationship, kind of like a scavenger hunt. If they were perfect, it wouldn’t be realistic. As we learn throughout the book, neither one is perfect: Clare has been so self-absorbed that she’s missed a problem her best friend Stella is dealing with and Aidan just might have some secrets he’s been keeping too, but the flaws make them real. Their personalities, while different, balance each other well and make their decision that much harder. He’s an athlete, a lacrosse player, which means he has to be able to go with the flow. Aidan on the other hand is more easy-going. Naturally, the turmoil that comes with leaving for college is stressing her out. In her life, everything goes according to plan. Clare is the kind of person who needs to have everything planned and laid out perfectly so she knows what to expect. Going back to Smith’s ability to capture teenagers so well, Clare and Aidan, as well as the supporting characters, are all distinct and realistic. At the same time, the arc of their relationship is realistic and one that readers can both understand and be happy with.
Smith managed to surprise me multiple times while I was reading, which I really appreciated. I went into this book expecting what one might think of as the “typical” plot and outcome for a story like this. They’ve been together for a good chunk of high school and as their last night looms ahead of them, they know they need to make a decision about if they’re going to stay together or not. It’s the night before both go their separate ways, literally, to college: Clare to Dartmouth and Aidan to UCLA. This is the situation that Clare and Aidan are facing in Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between. Even more so if you’re in a relationship where you’re unsure what your next step should be. Leaving for college is both an exciting and terrifying time. Her newest novel, Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between, continues proving that and tells a story that everyone can relate to on some level. Smith is one of those authors who can truly translate the experience of being a teenager authentically to the written word.
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