Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano
Published by Dial Press
Publication date: March 14, 2023
Genres: Book Clubs, Fiction, Literary
William has known life with only one love, basketball. Due to a family tragedy when he was born his parents refused him love or any kind of interaction beyond his physical needs. Discovering a place where he’s accepted is the only lifeline he has to normalcy. His basketball talent leads to a scholarship to Northwestern where he meets Julia. Her attention changes his life, not just because it’s a novelty, but because he is equally embraced by the rest of her family, including her three sisters. Hello Beautiful is Anne Napolitano’s warm, vibrant novel of family, mistakes, and forgiveness.
Julia is the oldest of the four and is the Padavano family’s linchpin. Self-confident, determined, and energetic she is the planner and fixer for all her sisters. She is closest to Sylvie who is the moon to Julia’s sun. She loves books and has no interest in the traditional paths of love, marriage, babies. For her there is no path, just a world waiting to be experienced. Cecelia and Emeline are twins and the family’s babies. Cecelia is an artist while Emeline is a homebody, happiest when she’s babysitting in the neighborhood or taking care of the family.
Into this noisy, emotional world comes William, a young man so damaged by his parents’ refusal to love him, he finds the family’s affection almost unfathomable. Coupled with the gravitational pull of Julia’s love and her certainty about their future together he falls into their orbit, until events overwhelm him. His actions, in the depths of his pain, destroy the force holding the family together, leaving the sisters as scattered and far apart as the night stars.
This summary feels inadequate for a novel so expansive. In Hello Beautiful. Sylvie, Cecelia, and Emeline are flush with life, first appearing on the page in their teens but becoming women, each with her own foibles and flaws. They thrive, stretching into what are the roots of the novel—the abiding love between the sisters. Against their growth and vitality Julia is more difficult to understand. She and her mother, Rose, are brittle figurines, stamped from a mold and kiln fired. They are a jarring anomaly in the midst of the rest of the family’s textures and layers. While her sisters expand, Julia stagnates as one of the most self-absorbed, judgmental, and uncaring characters I’ve ever read. Acutely aware of every wrong done to her, but with no interest in owning up to her mistakes.
Sadly, a part of me became as closed off to Julia as she was to everyone around her. Napolitano uses a “defiance of centuries of misogyny” to explain her actions. I’m always on board for smashing the patriarchy, but as it relates to the situation in Hello Beautiful it’s misapplied. I’m treading carefully here not to reveal too much of the plot, but the circumstances involve mental health. There’s no call for sacrifice, no gender role issues. All that’s asked for is compassion and Julia is unable to even consider it. It’s antithetical in the midst of a story so overflowing with generosity and love.
Despite this roadblock, Napolitano’s writing is such that there is no turning away from Hello Beautiful. Julia is one character in the midst of a circle of friends, lovers, sisters, children, and parents so abundant in their realness they saturate the page with life. They may be average people amongst everyday occurrences, but Napolitano’s prose lends them an extraordinary richness and a wealth of insight and beauty that makes Hello Beautiful a treasure.
If you’re in the mood for more tight-knit family sagas The Most Fun We’ve Ever Had by Claire Lombardo is marvelous.
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*I received a free copy of this book from The Dial Press in exchange for an honest review.*
Great review. I finished Hello, Beautiful Friday. While I couldn’t quite put my finger on it, you did. Julie and Rose were brittle and did not evolve in the book. At times I found the book so sad it was difficult to continue, but Napolitano’s writing was so beautiful that I kept reading to a very satisfying end.
Thank you. I felt the same way and kept wavering about giving it 5 stars, but I don’t understand why Rose and Julia had to be SO one-note when everyone else (including the father, Kent, and William) were so layered.
Catherine, you nailed my disappointment with this book. Most of the time I was reading, I was having a “5 star book” experience, but as the story evolved and Julia and Rose didn’t, I became more and more bothered by their self-centeredness and intransigence. In Julia’s case, I just didn’t feel it made sense given the intense bond she had with her family at the beginning of the book. I just read that you’re doing a “spoiler discussion” with Sarah and I can’t wait to listen!
First of all, “intransigence”- great word!!
It was an odd reading experience overall for those exact reasons. How could Julia be the family’s glue, but so lacking in compassion?
Sarah and I had fun recording. I camein pretty hot so hope I’m not just yelling for 30 minutes.
Great review. I always appreciate your posts. I loved Dear Edward and have this book on my nightstand!
I’m torn about reading Dear Edward. I’ve heard such different things- either love or hate. Apparently, they’re very different books.
Hi!!!! It’s been a while since I’ve posted here but was soooo curious about your thoughts. I felt so connected to the story and characters at the beginning but as it went on I was just so annoyed with Julia and Rose for the same reasons you’ve mentioned. I can’t put my finger on exactly where it fell flat for me. Their indifference, especially Julia’s? I will have to go and check out your podcast discussion. How I miss talking to you about books. I guess I’ll just have to visit you site more often. 🙂
Hello, dear!! I still think of Chicago BEA as one of the best book events I ever attended just for spending time with you and April.
Indifference is the nice way to put it. I go in pretty hard in the Spoiler Discussion. Julia was initially presented as the family’s glue and yet she walked away from them the minute life didn’ go as she wanted. Yuck.
Hi Catherine, Can I listen to your podcast discussionon Hello Beautiful?
I’m sorry, but it’s one of the bonus episodes available to paid subscribers of the podcast. You can subscribe to the paid level wherever you get your podcasts.
Hello. I love listening to you on Sarah’s Bookshelves! I have a question about this book and cannot find an answer to it in any book reviews. About a quarter of the way through the book I was struggling with the narration. It was different from any other book I’ve ever read. Clearly, the narration is told in third person omniscient, but the narrator still felt disconnected and outside the experience of the characters. It wasn’t until I reached the end of the book that I realized that the narrator is probably Alice retelling Sylvie’s story/book and that Hello, Beautiful is actually a “book within a book” trope. This would make sense to me, since Alice was on the outside most of her life and felt disconnected from her family’s experiences. Am I reading too much into this, or are you thinking “Well, obviously!” Lol. I appreciate any thoughts because I do not have anyone else I can talk to about this book.
Oh my gosh, I read it long enough ago that I don’t remember that! I’m going to do a little research and let you know. It certainly seems possible!
Thank you!