"More than a stunning debut. It is the announcement of a bold new literary voice"
—Stephen Chbosky, author of The Perks of Being a Wallflower

I know this already breaks the rules of the letters since you’re not dead, but what’s the good in writing to the people who can never read your letters? I just wanted to say thank you. Your lstory meant a lot to me and I’m grateful that it was shared, even though it wasn’t you who wrote it since it’s fiction. Reading your story made me feel grateful for so many things. I am so grateful that my family are all safe and although they’re not all together I know I can reach them whenever I need to. I am also grateful that I am safe and healthy. I also struggle with feeling uncomfortable being myself even though I wish people knew the real me. Weird right? I noticed a trend when reading your letters. The people you wrote to were broken souls. They were people who’d died tragically and suffered greatly although their lives seemed beautiful to everyone else. Amy Winehouse, Heath Ledger, River Phoenix and even May. Being adored by so many may seem like the most wonderful thing in the world but one look at any of the people in your letters shows you how unforgiving fame is. It ... Read more

I know this already breaks the rules of the letters since you’re not dead, but what’s the good in writing to the people who can never read your letters? I just wanted to say thank you. You’re story meant a lot to me and I’m grateful that it was shared, even though it wasn’t you who wrote it since it’s fiction. Reading your story made me feel grateful for so many things. I am so grateful that my family are all safe and although they’re not all together I know I can reach them whenever I need to. I am also grateful that I am safe and healthy. I also struggle with feeling uncomfortable being myself even though I wish people knew the real me. Weird right? I noticed a trend when reading your letters. The people you wrote to were broken souls. They were people who’d died tragically and suffered greatly although their lives seemed beautiful to everyone else. Amy Winehouse, Heath Ledger, River Phoenix and even May. Being adored by so many may seem like the most wonderful thing in the world but one look at any of the people in your letters shows you how unforgiving fame is. It ... Read more

Dear Ava Dellaira   I just read your book and decided to write this letter, I know you are not dead but didin’t want to write only for those who have died. I’ve never been able to keep a journal and I think maybe the letters are a good way to keep one.   I read your book in two days, and I can not stop thinking that you are the person who came closest to know the real me. Of course I know you even know that I exist, but the way you wrote love letters to the Dead, it seem like you had written to me or as if I myself had written. I never thought there would be someone able to understand what I feel or think, or who I am. But I identified deeply with Laurel and somehow with May , nothing horrible happened to me as happened to Laurel, but also my parents split up, he abandoned her, actually almost killed her. I hate him deeply.  I’m not good at expressing my feelings, never was. Writing is the only way I found to express myself, to be who I really am. I never said that to anyone. ... Read more

Senin yanında olmayı isterdim. Sonsuza dek. Senin kadar kusursuz ve güzel olmak isterdim. Bunu dilediğimde senden daha güzel olduğumu söylerdin. Bu konu da sana katılmıyorum. Bana gerçek bir sanatçı olduğumu ve asla umudumu kaybetmememi söylediğinde sana daha çok minnet duyuyordum. Ve şimdi seni çok özlüyorum. Seni daima seveceğim.

I remember when I gave you that nickname/codename back when we were 14. You used to wear this blue sweatshirt that made your eyes pop so much so that’s why I called you blu. Damn it’s been a really long time. I still have trouble listening to the song Use Somebody because it reminds me of you. A lots changed since then. But no matter what my feelings for you never changed. Even through all the bad shit that you did I still loved you. I wish I would have told you that when you were here. I wish I told you that you were the first person I had ever been in love with and that no one will ever compare to you. It has been 2 years since I last talked to you and I was planning on messaging you the day after you died but that never happened. I also thought that maybe one day we’d find our way back to each other and we could’ve been something or at least we could have been in each others lives. But you had other plans and that’s okay no ones mad. We’re all just happy that ... Read more

It’s been four days since you left us. Four surreal days without you. When I look at you, lying there so still, I am half expecting you to open your eyes, jump out and say ‘just kidding! I’m still here!’ but no. I’ve been waiting for four days for you to do that but, you still haven’t made your punchline Kuya. I can’t imagine you not being here, because you have always been here. I see you coming outside your house to smoke your cigarettes, I hear you playing your music so loud and I catch myself singing along with them, I see you starting your scooter up and just tinkering with it forever. Kuya you’ve always been here, so I have no f*cking clue (sorry for the F word) how to go through each day not seeing you here. It’s just way too soon Kuya.. I miss you already and I will miss you everyday. To our handyman, our protector, our driver, our brother, our one and only Kuya… I love you forever.

Even though I never met you (which I´m really lamented of), I wish I could have met you. I just like to imagine how would you treat me like a sister, or cousin, or even friend. I knew some people treated you like a sick person when you were little, and I know how much you loved your brother Theo. Every single time I read one of the letters you have written to him I can feel and your love and the way you cared about him, and how you expressed it on every single letters, including your paintings (obviously). Your paintings just make me feel like I´m way closer to Saint Remi, (which I´m really far away). I wish one day I could be like you, and I wish I could feel your presence right here with me.

Ya son casi 3 años desde aquel 6 de diciembre, fui la ultima persona en verte, había tanto que decir y muy poco tiempo, mi corazón se rompió al ver la manera tan triste en la que dejaste este espacio material, pero también fue claro después de algún tiempo que luchaste hasta el ultimo momento por mantener un poco mas, tu luz encendida.

Ha sido muy difícil para mi aceptar tu ausencia, extraño tu calidez, el brillo de tus ojos, esa risa estridente que contagiaba a cualquiera, tu capacidad de asombro por las cosas simples, disfrutar de un helado, tu compasión por los animales, tu amor por el arte, el cine, la lluvia, la naturaleza, entre muchas cosas mas, estando a tu lado me sentía libre de ser yo misma, podíamos cantar, gritar, comportarnos como dos adolescentes disfrutando de la vida. Me acompañaste en los peores momentos y en los mejores también, eras quien me guiaba, eras una mujer sabia llena de empatía, tenias las palabras exactas para cada problema.

Me hubiera gustado estar a tu lado hasta el ultimo de tus suspiros, lamento mucho no haber estado tanto tiempo mientras estabas enferma ya que te sentías sola, ... Read more

“If a man can bridge the gap between life and death,if he can live after he’s died, then maybe he was a great man. Immortality is the only true success.”- James dean. . You will always be in our heart Jimmy

I’ve whritten you so many letters here in the past year, but I just can’t stop. Seems like every now and then I have to come here and put it all out, because after all this time it still gets too much and this is one of the few ways I can get it all out. I’m realy glad that Ava wrote this book and that this site exsists. Like that you realy have the feeling that the dead person you are whriting to gets your message, sees it all, knows it all.

I still can’t believe your dead. Like dead…what is dead but a word? When I say it out loud or even in my mind, it seems just so wrong. It’s hard that I wake up in the middle of the night and the first thing I think of is ”he’s dead”. And then there are days when I totally expect you to come home, like you were just out with your friends like always. I think I’m dealing with this the wrong way, but I don’t know no other. I blame you a lot, I know I shouldn’t, I know I should understand or at least try ... Read more