HAZEL SAYS NO

“Sometimes, it wasn’t about right or wrong. You just had to be on the side of the person you love. No matter what.”

I absolutely LOVED this heartfelt, timely, fantastically genuine novel! When the Blum family moves from Brooklyn to a small town in Maine, their initial excitement is short-lived after Hazel has a terrible incident with the high school principal on the first day of her senior year. What promised to be a welcome reset for the family - fresh air! spacious house! career upgrade! - spirals into a maelstrom with reverberations throughout their entire new community. Feeling adrift in uncharted moral (and geographic) territory, Hazel and her family are forced to make critical choices, individually and together, that will have long ranging consequences for them all.

This was such a smart, satisfying, emotional story! These wonderfully authentic characters won me over, in part because of their imperfections. I cheered their triumphs and laughed at their missteps as they navigate a difficult path they didn’t choose, trying their best in a situation that feels life-altering, infuriating, confusing and ridiculous all at once. I especially loved Wolf, Hazel’s younger brother, but truthfully every Blum felt like a real and wholly knowable person to me. This is a story of growth, identity, compassion, and staying true to your inner voice - especially when that voice is saying NO. This is a great choice for book clubs to discuss, and it’s excellent on audio too!

I’ve done lots of book pairings with Maine lobster - lobster rolls, lobster bisque, and more. But when I saw these lobster strawberry cakes in my feed one day, I knew they were a must-try!! How cute?! The heart shaped claws are my favorite part! They are adorable IRL and so easy to assemble with big fat summer berries. Inspo here: Strawberry Lobster Cakes