The How the Why [Paperback]

A poignant exploration of family and the ties that bind, fromNew York Timesbestselling author Cynthia Hand.

Cassandra McMurtrey has the best parents a girl could ask for; theyve given Cass a life she wouldnt trade for the world. She has everything she needsbut she has questions, too. Like, to know who she is. Where she came from. Questions about her family secrets that her adoptive parents cant answer, no matter how much they love her.

But eighteen years ago, someone wrote Cass a series of letters. And they may just hold the answers Cass has been searching for.

What happens when the only person who holds the keys to your past is a voice from eighteen years ago?

• A Heartfelt Adoption Story:Told from the perspectives of both the adopted daughter, Cass, on the eve of her eighteenth birthday, and the teenage birth mother who wrote her a series of letters years ago.
• The Search for Identity:Cass has the perfect life and loving parents, but she cant answer the biggest questions: Who is she, and where did she come from?
• A Story Told in Letters:As Cass reads the letters left for her, she begins to piece together the heartbreaking, brave, and complicated story of the young woman who gave her up.
• Complex Mother-Daughter Relationships:An emotional exploration of the unbreakable bond between mothers and daughtersboth the ones who raise you and the ones who bring you into the world.