Review: Know Not Why by Hannah Johnson

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Know Not Why by Hannah Johnson

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Received: won
Publication Date: April 23rd 2012
Publisher: Smashwords
Genres & Themes: YA, Coming of Age, M/M romance, LGBT, Contemporary, Funny, Family, Friendship.

BLURB:

Howie gets a job at Artie Kraft’s Arts ‘N Crafts hoping to score with his lady coworkers. After all, girls love a sensitive guy, and what’s more sensitive than dedicating your life to selling yarn and … stuff? (Okay, so maybe it’d be a good idea to actually learn what one sells at an arts ‘n crafts store.) But things don’t go exactly according to plan. Coworker #1 is Cora: tiny, much-pierced, and way too fierce to screw with in any sense. Coworker #2 is Kristy: blonde, bubbly, unattainable perfection. And Coworker #3 is, well, Arthur. It goes without saying that he’s not an option. Right?

… Right?

Yeah, Howie’s life just got straight up confusing.

Pun intended.

REVIEW:

description

This may truly be the funniest book I’ve read in 2014!

The humor was present throughout the story and I felt it but the laugh out loud moments? Not exactly…

See, up to 40% of this book, I laugh out loud an uncountable amount of times and even thought very very hard about giving this a 5 star rating. BUT, after that 40%, more specifically 50%, it felt like the story was dragging and I wondered really hard when was Artie finally going to stop lying to his loved ones about who he really is. Though, since this is a coming of age story, I can understand the process of denial, revelation, acceptance, etc.

Nonetheless, the humor was still present after that percentage of the book but it didn’t make me laugh anymore. It may be because I got used to it…or maybe Howie just wasn’t funny anymore. I guess the drama took a big of a higher importance and I understand that, but I still wanted to be able to laugh…

Don’t get me wrong, I still think this is the funniest book I’ve read in 2014 because 40% of a book of 317 pages is something, so I did have a great time reading it. Plus, the drama scenes weren’t as dramatic as those usually are so this is incontestably a wonderful and relaxing read that I recommend to every M/M romance lover.

Howie is, for sure, a very easy character to connect with. You may not agree with the way he thinks and the reasons he wants that job at Artie Kraft’s Arts ‘N Crafts, but never will you hate or think he is a self-centered person. Because he isn’t. He cares about his mom, his brother, his friends and come to care about the people he works with as well.

He was actually a realistic person with honest thoughts. The fact that we always knew everything he was thinking about was a big plus to the story since that’s what makes me connect with a main character, usually. He was endearing.

Artie…changes. I couldn’t say if it’s because we don’t know him at first, except from Howie’s vision of him, but I feel like he had a major character development (the good kind.) He’s older than Howie but you won’t have the possibility to focus on that since he will charm you, reader.

One character I didn’t quite like though (but at first did) was Kristy. She started by being a very nice girl who cares but then I felt like she was becoming waaaay too upbeat and excited about every single good thing. She didn’t feel realistic nor was I patient to deal with her so, when she wasn’t in the picture, I was very happy girl.

The writing is very good and brought to life the majority of characters, especially Howie, plus an absolutely comfortable atmosphere.

Do you want an entertaining, original and heart-warming read?

If yes, I am curiously looking at why you haven’t picked this book up yet. *winks*

Would you consider voting for this review on Goodreads, if it were helpful? 🙂

30 thoughts on “Review: Know Not Why by Hannah Johnson”

  2. This book sounds great! I love books that make me laugh out loud or are even just funny in general, even if I don’t laugh. I find Howie’s working at a craft store to pick up girls completely unsurprising. I could definitely see guys doing something like that. Haha. I’m glad there’s character development for Howie and Artie since that’s such an essential for good stories. Aw, Kristy wasn’t your cup of tea? Mine either, I don’t like super uppity people and I’ve known one or two…

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  5. Despite your other issues with this book, I’m still tempted to read it for the humour. I often find that if an author can make me laugh, I have an easier time overlooking some of the story’s shortcomings. Sorry the second half didn’t work for you, but at least you got a bit of a belly muscle workout. Hehe 🙂

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  6. I do so love a book that can make me laugh Lola! It’s too bad the humor isn’t quite carried all the way through and peters off after the 40% mark, but your review still has me wanting to pick this one up immediately so I can meet Artie. Really looking forward to being charmed!

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  7. Kind of sad this seemed to drag after that 50% mark but still glad that you gave it so much praise even with that being said. It sounds like this was a really fun and humorous book and we all need those in our lives once in a while. 😉

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  11. Oooh funny books!! Me likey! I haven’t read funny book in a while and when a book makes you laugh out loud then it tells me a lot. Too bad that the middle of it wasn’t as good as the start but still it seems really enjoyable. Also the characters here seem really interesting. Great review, Lola 🙂

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  13. Aw, I missed visiting your blog and reading your reviews(school sucks!)! Anyway, I can’t remember the last time I laughed hard while reading a book and this sounds like a perfect stress-reliever. Fab review, Lola!

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  14. Haven’t read a funny book in a very long time! I added this book after reading the synopsis here, and after your review I am certain. I really want to read this book :D.

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