"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

It’s been 245 days since you left. I miss you so much. I know that you’re happy and well wherever you are right now. I always wish that what happen to our family is just a nightmare, that anytime I can wake up and still see you. Do you remember the book that my husband gave to me when I asked for a Christmas gift? When I tried to read it last year I wasn’t able to finish it because I didn’t find it interesting. The letters for the dead people that most of them I really don’t know where a little boring but I kept the book. When you died, I tried to read it again. I am amazed and thrilled about the book. it moved me. Now, I have the thinking of Laurel that you are just out there wandering. You will always be in my heart and forever will be.

Happy 27th birthday, first love. Today is your birthday, another year you’re gone from our sights but another year, you’re in our hearts. I keep trying to write about you so many times here but ended up deleting all those words at the end. I couldn’t find enough courage to do so, but here I am today, trying to rewrite all those words again on your birthday. There’s only one thing I wanna say to you, I miss you. Really miss you. It’s been five years now, but I still couldn’t forgive myself for all those mistakes I did towards yourself in the past. People around myself keep saying that I shouldn’t blame myself and I should forgive myself in order for me to moving on. But how can I forgive myself when I’m the one who have done wrong here? I try, love. But I just couldn’t. I’m sorry. I know you don’t even want me to act this way either. I just need more time but I couldn’t promise yourself when I can get over it. I don’t appreciate the times God has been given to me when you’re still alive. Since we broke up, you ... Read more

But now you’re buried beneath the ground. Well not you, your body. Its really lonely here without you Grandpa. I hope where you are all the pain is gone.

The last time I saw you I was too young to even walk. The only memories I have of you are from pictures taken long ago. In one you sit on the couch smiling next to my dad, you both have guitars in your lap and you look so happy. Looking at you there with my dad who was so young its so hard to believe that you’d want to kill yourself. But you did and now I’ll never have the chance to see you and my dad will forever have to suffer the loss of his dad. He misses yo like crazy you know. Sometimes he will sit in his room and play that song, the one he wrote about lost time, and cry. Its hard to understand why you’d want to leave all that behind but at the same time its not so hard. My dad says you got caught up in things you shouldn’t have and to escape the pain you turned to alcohol and drugs. You would sit in solitary and take all your anger out on your guitar for hours and when you came out you’d stare at the TV and try to block out ... Read more

Hey SamMonster, You may not know this but I’m your big sister. I remember being told I would be a big sister again and I was SO excited. I remember coming home and seeing your name band on the counter. Being 8 years old I didn’t know what happened. I also didn’t understand what happened. I ran to dad and said “Susan (Your mom) had the baby!” When dad said “No she didn’t. Put it back.” I didn’t understand you were gone. Well, I am 14 now and I understand. I hope you are having fun with Great Grandpa and Great Grandma. They are the best! I love you and miss you SamMonster. You will forever be in my heart.

SO ITS 9:18PM AND I HAVE SCHOOL IN THE MORING BUT IM READING LOVE LETTERS TO THE DEAD AND I SAW THAT I COULD COME ON HERE TO MAKE A LOVE LETTER. ANYWAY HEY BRAYDEN HOW ARE YOU I MISS YOU SO MUCH YOU AND YOU WILL ALWAYS WILL BE THE LOVE OF MY LIFE AND YES I KNOW I KNOW IM ONLY 13 BUT I FEEL IN MY HEART THAT YOUR THE ONE. EVERY SECOND THAT YOUR AWAY I THINK OF YOU AND SOMETIMES I CAN THINK OF YOU AND BE HAPPY BE OTHER TIMES I CRY BECAUSE YOUR SUCH A BIG PART OF MY LIFE. I WISH YOU COULD TALK TO ME BUT YOU KEEP ALL YOUR SAD THOUGHTS TO YOURSELF BUT I’M A VERY UNDERSTANDING PERSON AND I WISH I COULD BE THAT ONE PERSON THAT YOU CAN ALWAYS RUN TO. BE I GUESS LIFE DOESNT WORK THAT WAY. EVERYONE NEEDS THAT ONE PERSON THEY CAN TELL EVERYTHING TO. I THINK WE ARE A LOT ALIKE. LIKE MAYBE WE HAVE THE SAME THOUGHTS OR WE THINK ABOUT EACH OTHER AT THE SAME TIME. THE FEELING I GOT ON THE DAY WE MET 2 YEARS AGO IS THE ... Read more

I’m only thirteen and probably too young to admire you but I don’t care if I’m crazy about you because you are my one and only love in my life. You, only you can be uplifting to me when I feel blue. Each and everyone of your songs describe my whole life basically. I can’t even explain how much I love you. I discovered you at the young age of 2, when my mother used to make me watch your hit movies like Blue Hawaii, Kissin’ Cousins and much more. I have vague memories of your movies and it always gives me a warm, fuzzy feeling because I’m happy I got to have “Elvis Presley, The King Of Rock & Roll” in my childhood memories. Most kids today don’t have the privilege to listen to your great music. They prefere twenty-one Pilots, Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande, one direction and so on. I want to literally kill myself so badly when I listen to today’s music because it’s just too much garbage. Where did the times go? Where you were the main heartthrob of all the teenage girls, when Martin Luther King made history, when J.F.K was president, when Marilyn was ... Read more

Sabes? tu libro me ha encantado; es uno de mis favoritos no soy experta en esto de la escritura pero cuando empecé a leer me encanto más y más hasta hoy no he podido parar cada que acabo un libro siento la necesidad de leer otro y poder sonreír, llorar, etc.

Cuando leí tu libro me sentí muy identificada con Laurel porque así como ella yo le escribo a Kurt Cobain uno de mis ídolos, también le escribo a Jim Morrison, Dimebag Darrell, Jhon Bonham y muchos más. Siento la necesidad de hacerlo, siento que aunque ellos ya no estén aquí me escuchan y me comprenden como jamás lo ha podido hacer mi madre ni ninguna otra persona.

En fin, gracias por haber creado Cartas de Amor a los Muertos, de verdad, gracias porque aunque no lo creas con este libro hiciste sentir a muchas personas identificadas las hiciste llorar en algunos momentos y sonreír en otros las hiciste enamorarse de este libro maravilloso y enamorarse de cada uno de los personajes. Gracias otra vez por habernos dado la oportunidad de meternos en el personaje de Laurel y sentir el dolor que ella sentía, por darnos la oportunidad de leer como ... Read more

After we parted ways to our new schools, we still tried desperately to keep in touch. Our chats were usually about how we were both doing, but we were never on at the same time. When we lost contact, admittedly I didn’t think twice, but you were in the back of my mind and you’ll pop up whenever someone mentions “childhood”. When I got the news of your fight with an illness, I was devastated. You lost the fight. At that time, I had a relaxing month with school going so smoothly. It pained me to realise that while I was doodling in classes, you were slipping away to somewhere I’m not allowed to go yet. But I’ve moved on from grief, and learnt to treasure every moment with my friends. Try to smear them in my mind, remember every word said and the bumps of a laugh, take every photo like I’ll be looking at it someday, sometime, realising the people I was with are gone. This year, your death anniversary passed and I didn’t notice up until a week later. I was surprised considering how depressed I was about it last year. But now, I can even ... Read more

I just wanted to say that we really miss you down here. I’ve been thinking about you a lot lately I guess because it’s almost November 1st. I really hope that you’re in a better place. A place where anxiety and OCD and Medical shit wasn’t a thing. I know i didn’t know who you were before you died but when I found out that you were dead I bawled my eyes out. Every time I hear thunder I think of you stomping in heaven. Love you Mitch ❤️