The People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry
Ah, love. Every now and then, a cheesy romance novel is needed to nourish the soul. I devoured romance novels when I was younger, which most definitely led to unrealistic expectations of dating, as well as the capacity of teenage boys to think about anything except boobs, weed, and cars. It’s been a while since I indulged in the steadfast genre of romance, but The People We Meet on Vacation satisfied each pang for lust and longing.
Author Emily Henry softly smiles from the back cover, perfectly pink lips and blonde hair. My brain automatically decided to write her off (see what I did there?) as a nostalgic millennial, whose creative writing degree and ability to use a thesaurus scored her a Penguin House book deal. As many young, contemporary writers seek to make their mark on the literary world, to distinguish themselves from the drunks, the philosophers, and the lonely, many simply fall short. Take Sally Rooney’s Normal People, or Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam, both of whom attempted to deviate from expectations only to leave readers aggrieved.
About halfway through the book, I realized that Emily Henry was the exact reflection of who I wanted to become, and ain’t that some shit! I’ve fallen trap to the patriarchy: women judging other women because of their success, talent, and femininity. As someone who aspires to be an author- one of many average joes who think they’ve got something to say- I instead choose to cheer her on! There is nothing wrong with spending a career crafting beautiful, albeit temporary, love stories for people who crave them. Therefore, let the record be known that despite unfair preconceptions, Emily Henry’s novel was delightful, well-crafted, and had me squirming in anticipation of the happy ending.
I was already drooling over Alex- a lanky, bookish best friend to our protagonist Poppy- when he is introduced to readers in a rowdy bar on Sanibel Island. He’s posted up in the corner, hunched over his phone, reading. Henry describes his standard white boy charm- blue eyes, sandy brown hair that sticks up in all directions, and tall. Poppy, in contrast, is small but mighty; A ‘tiny fighter’, if you will. Adorned in brightly colored vintage, she’s boisterous and quick-witted, seeking out good company wherever she lands.
Alex and Poppy meet at orientation at the University of Chicago. As nervous freshmen flutter around them, the two discover that they are from the same podunk town in Ohio, but have nothing in common beyond that. Alex bids her farewell and they part ways. By a fateful dorm connection, Poppy catches a ride with Alex back home for the summer, where the two form an unlikely connection. She pries into his likes and dislikes, and hours into the ride, they find common ground in hating people who reference their boat as ‘she’.
The book is organized by asynchronous chapters, alternating between the present Summer Trip and the past twelve Summer Trips. After landing her dream job as a travel writer at a magazine, she travels the globe and smacks down the company card, taking Alex along for the ride. One summer trip in Croatia spoils the bubble they’ve carefully created, tip-toeing around their mutual feelings for each other to preserve their friendship.
From feverish cuddles, clumsy dances, blurry photographs, ancient inside jokes, and tipsy kisses, The People We Meet on Vacation had me falling in love with a best friend that doesn’t exist. There is so much sweetness in this novel: Henry builds their relationship over a decade, capturing intimacy in their intuitiveness for each other. They communicate beyond words, between hugs and knee-knocks and shoulder-resting and facial expressions. I want so badly to see Alex’s Sad Puppy Face.
SPOILER ALERT AHEAD: Boy, does Henry have an imagination. When they finally rip their clothes off, it is a scene worthy of The Notebook. Tensions and hot temperatures finally coalesce into a slippery, sensual scene where the desires from the past twelve years crash into the moment. Alex, ever the gentleman, asks for her consent to do this...and this…and that... Consent is sexy! He takes it slow, as he says, he’s waited twelve year for this and he wants to savor every moment. I almost screamed. I mean, this man got a vasectomy for her and they weren’t even dating- he just had faith that one day they would be together! Come on!
I nearly forgot about the divisive excuses that authors have to think up in order to make things difficult for two people meant to be. The rollercoaster of romance novels- they finally accept their fate as one, they kiss, a damaging piece of information is revealed, they break up and distance, their fragile hearts pine for each other….one lengthy soliloquy later, they’ve kissed and made up. Predictable, but it gets me every time!
If you want to feel warm and buoyant from love, if you want to feel butterflies again and tingle in your toes, if you want to stress-pace around the kitchen and stay up late reading because you have to finish, read The People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry.
