What's the Buzz: 'When Haru Was Here'

Grief is not a pretty process. Just ask Dustin Thao, the author of the new YA novel When Haru Was Here (Wednesday Books, Sept. 3), a contemporary romance that grapples with loss and second chances with a magical realism twist.

Thao’s highly anticipated sophomore novel comes off the heels of his successful debut You’ve Reached Sam. In 2019 Thao penned a two-book deal with Wednesday Books v-p and associate publisher Eileen Rothschild. The first result was You’ve Reached Sam, the heartbreaking journey of Julie, a young woman who can only contact her deceased boyfriend Sam through a phone. It was released in 2021 and soon became a BookTok favorite; it sat on the New York Times bestseller list for 37 weeks, has sold a million copies worldwide, and can be spotted in a myriad of videos on TikTok.

“The experience of having the book become a hit on TikTok was definitely life-changing,” Thao told PW. “To see people cry over my book was such a unique and shocking experience. As an author, I always hope that I make one person cry.”

For his second book, Thao revisits the concept of a new chance at love. Queer Vietnamese American high school graduate Eric Ly once had an enchanting first encounter with Haru in Japan. Since then, Eric has lost his best friend and childhood crush Daniel and is grappling with his death. When Haru reappears at a coffee shop in Eric’s hometown of Chicago, Eric seizes his second opportunity to get to know Haru, even if no one can see Haru but him. If it sounds heartbreaking, it’s because it’s meant to be. Thao, who “wears his heart on his sleeve,” notes that he’s always been inspired by works that pull on the reader’s heartstrings, ranging from Katherine Paterson’s Bridge to Terabithia to Marvel’s Wanda Vision.

“I don't write about happy endings,” Thao said with a laugh. “I think that’s why readers gravitate towards my work. We all love a sad story. Like when it comes to Taylor Swift, her best songs are the ones that make us cry.”

Emotional books make up a significant portion of books that become BookTok favorites. Thao joins Laura Nowlin, Adam Silvera, Jennifer Niven and others in the pantheon of authors whose books are guaranteed to get readers to shed a tear. “I think readers want an emotional experience, to feel deeply,” editor Rothschild told PW. “Whether that is laughing, crying or swooning. They want to be transported.”

Readers are looking forward to Thao breaking their hearts once more. When Haru Was Here has can be spotted and most anticipated lists such as Barnes & Noble and Book Riot. Ahead of the book’s release, Thao finally joined his readers on TikTok, garnering 18,000 followers in the span of six months.

Thao confirmed the adage that writing the second book is always more challenging than the first, saying that it “was much harder in so many ways.” One such challenge was in writing a character that felt more “likable” than his previous protagonist, but one still worthy of love. Eric, the story’s protagonist, is struggling with rejection on several fronts: finding a fulfilling job in the film industry, and facing the relentless awkwardness of dating. And he struggles with the confusing emotions and coping mechanisms that come with losing a loved one.

“He’s incredibly flawed,” Thao said. “People are questioning the decisions that he makes. I wanted readers who have experience of rejection to be able to find themselves in my stories, and to know that these things are okay and they happen, and that in life we learn to pivot.”

When Haru Was Here was also a project that felt more “personal” to Thao by writing about experiences closer to his own. “This is my first book where the character is queer. He’s also Vietnamese, and that’s something that I knew I wanted to write about,” Thao said. “The book is fiction, but I got to draw from some of my own personal experiences growing up with a Vietnamese immigrant family.”

Thao’s offering of grace to an imperfect journey navigating grief was intentional. “If there’s one thing I hope readers take away,” he said, “it is that grief is not something that has to be experienced gracefully.”

As bittersweet as his work may be, Thao doesn’t only want to break readers’ hearts. He also hopes that his work showcases how to navigate the permanence of loss with a sense of hope.

“Grief is not something we get over, it is something we learn to live with,” Thao said. “These things happen. We lose the people we love, we experience heartbreak, we experience rejection, but we move forward. We grow from them. And there is always hope at the end.”