At first, though, I was a little skeptical. Even though I've read all of Lisa Mangum's novels and enjoyed them, this book essentially happens during the course of one single day. Sara is visiting New York, a photographer and an artist at heart. Sam is something of an enigma, and noticing him from afar, Sara snaps a picture of him.
My skepticism boiled down to this: how can you establish relationships, plot, and all the other intricacies involved in book-making when all you give yourself is one day? For Mangum, the answer, I believe, came down to two steps.
1) The reader has to have a conversation with both Sara and Sam. Thus, the first chapter was written in a first-person narrative, following Sara every step of the way. The second chapter focused on Sam ... but in third person.
I had to take a step back there. Looking at the story from this angle was something I had never encountered. Mangum was bold to do it, but it was absolutely right. I loved seeing the story not only from each character's perspective, but from the stylistic differences between narrators, as well.
2) Sara and Sam's journey, while physical, has to be primarily emotional. This book delves intensely into these people's heads, into the stories that haunt their past. It surprised me. When you first pick up After Hello it promises to be a light read. And while it has all sorts of quirky and light-hearted moments, it was much more serious than I expected. Sometimes that weighed me down a little. Sometimes I doubted that such a story could even take place.
But then, I thought, isn't that the magic of stories? That sometimes the impossible CAN happen, and even the smallest of items, like sugar packets, can be the start of something greater? Something better?
I think so.
Appropriate for ages 15+
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