All the Ugly and Wonderful Things

A Novel

By: Bryn Greenwood

Narrated by: Jorjeana Marie

Length: 11 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's summary

A beautiful and provocative love story between two unlikely people and the hard-won relationship that elevates them above the Midwestern meth lab backdrop of their lives.

As the daughter of a drug dealer, Wavy knows not to trust people, not even her own parents. It's safer to keep her mouth shut and stay out of sight.

Struggling to raise her little brother, Donal, eight-year-old Wavy is the only responsible adult around. Obsessed with the constellations, she finds peace in the starry night sky above the fields behind her house until one night her stargazing causes an accident. After witnessing his motorcycle wreck, she forms an unusual friendship with one of her father's thugs, Kellen, a tattooed ex-con with a heart of gold.

By the time Wavy is a teenager, her relationship with Kellen is the only tender thing in a brutal world of addicts and debauchery. When tragedy rips Wavy's family apart, a well-meaning aunt steps in, and what is beautiful to Wavy looks ugly under the scrutiny of the outside world.

A powerful novel you won't soon forget, Bryn Greenwood's All the Ugly and Wonderful Things challenges all we know and believe about love.

©2016 Bryn Greenwood (P)2016 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Jorjeana Marie was meant to narrate this gripping story, which takes place in meth country in the Midwest. Neglected, abused 8-year-old Wavy Quinn is stargazing when she unintentionally causes Jesse Joe Kellen, an ex-con employee of her drug-dealing dad, to crash his motorcycle. Marie grippingly portrays this troubled pair who befriend each other after Wavy saves his life. Things come to a head when their relationship is misunderstood. In addition to deftly presenting the lead characters, Marie perfectly renders Wavy's adorable little brother and beloved grandmother. Some chapters are written from other characters' viewpoints over a period of 15 years, and Marie presents those flawlessly as well. Listeners will be eager to hear what happens next, always rooting for Wavy and Kellen." ( AudioFile Magazine)

Never read anything like this book!

If you could sum up All the Ugly and Wonderful Things in three words, what would they be?

Dysfunctional love story

Who was your favorite character and why?

Kellen...Hes real...He is s decent person and wants to do the best...for people but in his situation its hard to do the right thing all the time. His back round of being abused and moving from place to place allows him to feel empathy for these children and he wants to do the right thing. It is really a heartbreaking story.

What does Jorjeana Marie bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Nothing really she is good but I was so obsessed with this book read at night on Kindle and listened on way to work and finished on kindle.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I cheered for Kellen and Wavy. I laughed I cried. I was appalled at times but it was good its real.

Any additional comments?

I really feel like i enjoyed this book because I know people like this. My daughter was a drug user. I have been in homes like this searching for her. I saw children like this. I have dealt with the so called caring teachers and administration at schools. It hit home for me and I was sad when the book ended and it haunted me for days..Referred this book to a friend and she read it straight through in 8 hours never put it down.

What's with all the hype?

I didn't like it at all. Yes, it has broken people finding that one person that makes them feel safe. But, the characters and storyline just didn't do it for me. Barely finished.

Creepy but good

Other than a few times when the book repeated itself, the performance was great.

The story was not exactly what I expected and my husband gave me dirty looks when he heard what I was listening to but as an adult, we should be mature enough to handle the content and as a female, these experiences are real and happen more often than they should so the story was good. The author wrote the characters in a way that you could properly understand the characters and their feelings. I liked the book regardless of the uncomfortable content.

So sad and amazing

This is a very difficult novel to get through at times. Thought provoking, heart renching, and beautiful.

It’s all in the title

This is not an easy listen. I honestly nearly stopped because Wavy and Kellen have a 10-12 year age difference and she was just 8 when they met. Pedophilia is not romantic. I just don’t think that’s what this book was about. It’s such an uncomfortable listen. At the end, I wondered if this was written based on personal experience. This isn’t a romance novel, it’s a novel about life. Life isn’t always pretty or easy to stomach. Bad stuff happens all the time, and sometimes the silver lining for some is part of the dark cloud for others. Not all our journeys are meant to be the same. I’m not at all condoning the behavior in this book, but it would be informant to assume this isn’t someone’s reality. It would be arrogant to assume a righteous position because my life experiences have lended me different opportunities and perspectives than these characters. Wavy’s conversation with the judge is my biggest take away from this entire book, I hope anyone that listens to this book gets to that point in the story. It’s a long hard road, there’s no feel good parts, but it’s a story that will stick with you.

Beautiful and wonderful and ugly!

I love this book! So many mixed emotions. The characters are unique and special and the entire book was so much more than I thought it would be. Hard at times, and heartbreaking, but wonderful story.

narration outstanding

really enjoyed the narration.
the story was awesome. totally unexpected.
caught me from the very beginning

A dysfunctional I want to call it a family

We follow a couple of people who can only be called twinned stars...surrounded by cheap punks and bad girls and within it all they find beauty...only to be separated from one another. The story is lovely, and hard all at once. The story is love will find a way....or am I reading too much into it? I liked it

Heartbreaking story of child abuse and a forbidden love story

The characters were very believable. It is difficult story about abuse and neglect, and despite the taboo nature of the love story, I found myself routing for the couple

Good Narrator, Poor Production Editing

This is more of a review of the narration of the book. Well, more like the production editing of the narration. I would have enjoyed the book more had there not been a number of repeated sentences as well as incorrect character voice changes within chapters. I seriously think someone should re-listen to / re-edit this book in its entirely and correct these random errors. They were rather distracting.