Hi there! I’m here to talk about an emotional sophomore novel that I have been highly anticipating. **And every day we are reminded that discrimination against marginalized communities is still a serious problem, so click here to find a compilation of resources where you can donate your time, money, or whatever you can to support these communities. I still encourage you to research these causes on your own to educate yourself and find the best way to lend your support.**
Back in 2020, I was approved for a YA contemporary debut titled Amelia Unabridged by Ashley Schumacher. It centered a girl, Amelia, who, after losing her best friend suddenly and unexpectedly, travels to a bookstore and finds how to make a future for herself. It was such an incredible book and I couldn’t wait for it to be released so I could share more of my thoughts with the world (you can find my review here). So when I heard Schumacher was releasing another book, revolving around band kids that promised to be even more heartbreaking than Amelia Unabridged, I knew I had to get my hands on it. And that’s how I found myself reading Full Flight, a YA contemporary about first love, loss, and life late into the night, and it truly fulfilled its promise of breaking my heart.
Fall may be football season for most residents of Enfield, Texas, but for the members of the Fighting Enfield Marching Band, it’s contest season. And for Anna James, junior and new saxophonist, it’s a chance to prove herself as the great musician who deserves to be there as much as anyone else. She’s having a hard time finding the right notes when assigned her first duet, so she turns to her piece partner, Weston Ryan, mellophone player, for help. Weston is the boy her small town has deemed nothing but trouble, but as the two spend hours practicing and the notes slowly fall into place, they both find there is more than meets the eye. As Weston and Anna spend more time together, they have to deal with other people’s misconceptions and learn what it truly means to fight for something they love. But when the unthinkable happens and tragedy strikes, one is left to deal with picking up the pieces of shattered hearts.
I’m so glad that the writing style and character development that I loved so much in Amelia Unabridged made its way into Schumacher’s sophomore novel. A difference I noted pretty early on was that this book is told in dual perspective, with chapters alternating between Weston and Anna’s points of view. I think this really helped the reader get inside the heads of the two main characters. I really appreciated the portrayal of loneliness that is present in both points of view – both Weston and Anna feel ostracized at some point, whether from their family, school, town, or band, and handle it in different ways, with Anna putting on a smile and acting as if nothing is wrong and trying her best to fit in while Weston embraces his loner status and keeps to himself, letting everyone else form opinions about him. Also, the musical descriptions and marching band elements are done so well, that every band geek is going to be laughing at the relatability (while some readers a lit more unfamiliar may find it a bit much at times, but that’s ok, marching band kids can be extra sometimes). I played flute in my middle school orchestra, and while I was never in marching band, I was around plenty of people who were in college and I can definitely see where the inspiration came from. I really enjoyed delving into Weston and Anna’s family lives to see some comparisons when they’re pretty vastly different – Weston is an only child, the son of divorced parents who aren’t present for much of the novel, while Anna has a younger sister and stricter parents who are more involved in her life, even if to a detriment sometimes. There is certainly some discussion as to whether there is a balance between “too present” and “not present enough” when it comes to parenting, and trying to do what you think is best for your kids while also taking into account what they think is best for themselves. I knew to expect tragedy, and I could almost see it coming, but even that didn’t stop me from feeling all the emotions when it happened. I was there, right alongside the characters, grappling with the aftermath, and that, truly, is what I’d constitute as good writing.
I’ll be honest, I think a chapter might have been missing from my review copy which may have affected my reading experience. If it’s intentionally left out, I think we need some context and I hope it’s just an error, so I’ll check this with the finished copy and update this post if it is, indeed, missing unintentionally. [Update from the future to say that only the POV marker from that chapter is missing, the rest is left intentionally blank for reasons that will become clear in the following chapter]. From the synopsis we know that something tragic occurs in this book. I tried to make my description a bit vague, because some listings give more detail that, I feel, may make the moment less impactful. And I want to talk briefly about the ending, without giving too much away, because I have some pretty interesting thoughts. Lately I’ve been picking up books that center grief and loss, and how someone (a person or a fictional character) goes through the grieving process. Sometimes, when loss happens unexpectantly, your brain does not fully process the events that have transpired, so you can go through the motions of attending the funeral, dealing with arrangements, etc. while it’s all a blur. But in moments of solitude, when you’re truly alone with your thoughts, that’s when sadness can creep in and take over, giving way to a variety of emotions. While initially I thought the ending was a bit rushed, reading it through a second time solidified how well, in my opinion, this book portrays that process. *I will note that all individuals can process grief differently, and all emotions felt during this time are valid*
In conclusion, Ashley Schumacher has a way of making me care about her characters and breaking my heart when they come into harm’s warm or are dealing with the effects of loss. I cannot wait to reread this book upon release and feel those emotions all over again. Full Flight is set to be released on February 22nd, 2022, which is the day this post goes live, so please join me in wishing it a happy book birthday and consider picking up a copy yourself if you’re at all interested. *Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Wednesday Books, for the e-copy, all thoughts and opinions are my own.*
Where to find Full Flight:
Bookshop
Amazon
Goodreads
Storygraph
Macmillan
Ashley Schumacher’s site
Thoughts About Things 