How ‘They Both Die at the End’ by Adam Silvera Helped Me Deal with Loss

They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera
Published by HarperCollins on September 5, 2017
Genres: Death & Dying, Friendship, LGBT, Social Themes, Young Adult Fiction
Pages: 400
Format: Hardcover

Death-Cast is an program that calls individuals to warn them they are going to die that day. The intent is to allow those individuals to live their last day to its fullest.  Those destined to die that day are granted a number of programs to fulfill their dreams and to avoid spending their last day alone.  Last Friend is an app meant to connect those counting down their last hours.  Using this app, Rufus and Mateo meet.

Rufus was the sole survivor of an accident that took the lives of his parents and sister. They were deemed destined to die that day, but he was not. He's been living with the survivors guilt since then.

Mateo's mother died giving birth to him. Raised by only his father, now in a coma, Mateo too struggles with surviving when others around him have passed.

Together, they realize that though their last day on Earth has arrived, it shouldn't determine how they spend it. Living life to it's fullest is paramount, especially the end is imminent.

There’s a story about the the timing of my reading this title. I purchased this book during Small Business Saturday and it’s been in a pile of unread books since then.  I recently lost a dear friend to cancer. Terry was a bookseller at my local independent book store. I met her years ago before the store opened. She was an amazing woman, full of spunk and spirit.  I was in a funk after learning of her passing. I knew I had to escape in a book so I told one of my boys to pick a book from the pile for me to read.  This title was the one the selected. Initially, I was going to have them pick a different title. The last thing I wanted to do was read about death, after losing someone so special.  Yet something told me to go on….and I did.

It was fate that I read this book.  It allowed me to see that Terry did live her life to her fullest, that the memories that she left with those who survive her will guarantee that her spirit and soul will continue within each and every one of us.  This is the exact intent and purpose of this title, to serve as a message to all to stop living the basics of day to day monotony and not wait until the end is imminent to take advantage of all the blessings life has given us.

This is a truly tremendous read…highly, highly recommended.