what I’m reading: how to be remembered by michael thompson.

Since he was 1, every year on his birthday Tommy Llewellyn goes through a Reset – he is forgotten by everyone who knows him, and all his belongings, photographs, and records of him are erased. After being forgotten by his parents on his first birthday, Tommy moves into a children’s home where he lives for the rest of his childhood. Over the years Tommy learns how to navigate the Reset and has memorized what to say to people when he reintroduces himself over and over to people and friends he already knows. But then two things happen – Tommy makes a friend that he wants to keep in touch with and not have to keep explaining who he is every year, and he falls in love. Tommy sets out to figure out a way to trick the Reset and the universe into remembering him.

I wasn’t sure where this book was going at first. This was definitely an interesting concept but it felt like the first half of the book was just a lot of background and watching Tommy go through his life. I almost put this book down and went on to something else a few times. However, around the second half, once Tommy starts doing something for himself and acting in his best interest by trying to figure out how to trick the Reset, the book picks up speed.

I was a little confused as to the time frame and location in which the book takes place. I think the book might take place in Australia because it’s mentioned that it is really hot around Tommy’s birthday, which is the first week in January. Also, I’m pretty sure this book takes place in the current time but there were little things that made me wonder – like Tommy seems to have never used the internet until he moved out of the children’s home when he was 18. Did they not have computers with internet in school? Or at the children’s home? Also, he doesn’t get a cell phone until he’s 19 perhaps, although this could be because he lived in the home and couldn’t afford one and it would be hard to explain how he had a phone with the Reset but it left me questioning.

Not to spoil the ending but I had hoped that we would eventually find out what caused the Reset and why it was happening to Tommy but we don’t. I was disappointed that this was never explained. I felt like we went through the whole book of everyone forgetting Tommy year after year and we never find out why. I know some people may just go with it, but I really wanted to know.

Tommy was an interesting character and I kind of admired him. I don’t know what I would do in his situation. I loved that he searched for and tried to figure out a workaround for the Reset. I loved that he never got discouraged when he had to introduce himself to the same people over and over (although it was a little convenient that everyone accepted him and became friends (again) with him so quickly). He was very creative and industrious and I’m glad he got a happily ever after.

This was a good book, however I’m not sure I loved it as much as other people did.

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