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Editorial Content for A World Without You

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Reviewer (text)

Brynn S., Teen Board Member

Since Bo lost his girlfriend, Sofía, his world has been upside down. They both attended Berkshire Academy, a boarding school for troubled youth, but Bo likes to believe he knows the truth: that the school is for kids with special abilities. After all, Bo can time travel. That’s how he lost Sofía in the first place; he left her behind in the past. While everyone else seems to believe Sofía committed suicide, Bo know he can get her back using his powers. Read More

Teaser

Seventeen-year-old Bo has always had delusions that he can travel through time. When he was ten, Bo claimed to have witnessed the Titanic hit an iceberg, and at 15, he found himself on a Civil War battlefield, horrified by the bodies surrounding him. So when his concerned parents send him to a school for troubled youth, Bo assumes he knows the truth: that he’s actually attending Berkshire Academy, a school for kids who, like Bo, have "superpowers."

Promo

Seventeen-year-old Bo has always had delusions that he can travel through time. When he was ten, Bo claimed to have witnessed the Titanic hit an iceberg, and at 15, he found himself on a Civil War battlefield, horrified by the bodies surrounding him. So when his concerned parents send him to a school for troubled youth, Bo assumes he knows the truth: that he’s actually attending Berkshire Academy, a school for kids who, like Bo, have "superpowers."

About the Book

Seventeen-year-old Bo has always had delusions that he can travel through time. When he was ten, Bo claimed to have witnessed the Titanic hit an iceberg, and at 15, he found himself on a Civil War battlefield, horrified by the bodies surrounding him. So when his concerned parents send him to a school for troubled youth, Bo assumes he knows the truth: that he’s actually attending Berkshire Academy, a school for kids who, like Bo, have "superpowers."

At Berkshire, Bo falls in love with Sofia, a quiet girl with a tragic past and the superpower of invisibility. Sofia helps Bo open up in a way he never has before. In turn, Bo provides comfort to Sofia, who lost her mother and two sisters at a very young age.

But even the strength of their love isn’t enough to help Sofia escape her deep depression. After she commits suicide, Bo is convinced that she's not actually dead. He believes that she's stuck somewhere in time --- that he somehow left her in the past, and now it's his job to save her.  

Not since Ned Vizzini’s IT'S KIND OF A FUNNY STORY has there been such a heartrending depiction of mental illness. In her first contemporary novel, Beth Revis guides readers through the mind of a young man struggling to process his grief as he fights his way through his delusions. As Bo becomes more and more determined to save Sofia, he has to decide whether to face his demons head-on, or succumb to a psychosis that will let him be with the girl he loves.

Todd Ruthman

The only person you should ever compete with is yourself. You can't hope for a fairer match.

Attribution

Todd Ruthman

July 26, 2016

In this newsletter, you will find books releasing the weeks of July 25th and August 1st that we think will be of interest to Bookreporter.com readers, along with Bonus News, where we call out a contest, feature or review that we want to let you know about so you have it on your radar. This week, we are calling attention to our Sneak Peek contest for THE OTHER EINSTEIN by Marie Benedict. Also, please keep in mind our Word of Mouth and Sounding Off on Audio contests, the latter of which ends on Monday, August 1st at noon ET, and be sure to vote in our poll about reading the last page of a book first.

July 26, 2016

This Bookreporter.com Special Newsletter spotlights a book that we think is a great summer reading selection. Read more about it, and enter our Summer Reading Contest by Wednesday, July 27th at 11:59am ET for a chance to win one of five copies of GOOD AS GONE by Amy Gentry, which is now available. Please note that each contest is only open for 24 hours, so you will need to act quickly!

The Secrets She Kept by Brenda Novak

Exciting, emotional and intense, THE SECRETS SHE KEPT is the thrilling follow-up to New York Times bestselling author Brenda Novak's highly acclaimed THE SECRET SISTER. The things that happen in families are always surprising and sometimes shocking!

The rich and powerful Josephine Lazarow, matriarch of Fairham Island, is dead. The police say it's suicide, but Keith, her estranged son, doesn't believe it.

Ages 8-12

What’s better than being best friends? Being best friends who volunteer together at the Roxbury Park Dog Shelter! With a focus on friendship, family, and cute canines, Roxbury Park Dog Club is perfect for tween readers who snap up books from series like Cupcake Diaries and Candy Apple, or for anyone who loves dogs.

Tom Bissell

When I play too many video games I begin to feel chubby-minded, caffeinated, bad.

Attribution

Tom Bissell

Editorial Content for Level Up

Book

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Michael Lee Harris

I was drawn to read the graphic novel LEVEL UP, written by Gene Luen Yang with art by Thien Pham, because of Yang's previous book, AMERICAN BORN CHINESE. Like AMERICAN BORN CHINESE, LEVEL UP follows a young Asian American male coming of age while dealing with balancing old world family ideals with newer American cultural norms.

"Gene Luen Yang is his usual charming self in this book. Dennis Ouyang is a likeable character with an extremely relatable struggle."

Teaser

Dennis Ouyang lives in the shadow of his parents' high expectations. They want him to go to med school and become a doctor. Dennis just wants to play video games --- and he might actually be good enough to do it professionally. But four adorable, bossy, and occasionally terrifying angels arrive just in time to lead Dennis back onto the straight and narrow: the path to gastroenterology. It's all part of the plan, they tell him. But is it? This powerful piece of magical realism brings into sharp relief the conflict many teens face between pursuing their dreams and living their parents'.

Promo

Dennis Ouyang lives in the shadow of his parents' high expectations. They want him to go to med school and become a doctor. Dennis just wants to play video games --- and he might actually be good enough to do it professionally. But four adorable, bossy, and occasionally terrifying angels arrive just in time to lead Dennis back onto the straight and narrow: the path to gastroenterology. It's all part of the plan, they tell him. But is it? This powerful piece of magical realism brings into sharp relief the conflict many teens face between pursuing their dreams and living their parents'.

About the Book

Smackdown!

Video Games vs. Medical School!

Which will win the battle for our hero's attention in Gene Luen Yang's new graphic novel?

Dennis Ouyang lives in the shadow of his parents' high expectations. They want him to go to med school and become a doctor. Dennis just wants to play video games --- and he might actually be good enough to do it professionally.

But four adorable, bossy, and occasionally terrifying angels arrive just in time to lead Dennis back onto the straight and narrow: the path to gastroenterology. It's all part of the plan, they tell him. But is it? This powerful piece of magical realism brings into sharp relief the conflict many teens face between pursuing their dreams and living their parents'.

Partnered with the deceptively simple, cute art of newcomer Thien Pham, Gene Yang has returned to the subject he revolutionized with AMERICAN BORN CHINESE. Whimsical and serious by turns, LEVEL UP is a new look at the tale that Yang has made his own: coming of age as an Asian American.

Michael Lee Harris

Reviewer

Michael Lee Harris is a Georgia-based artist who has drawn such titles as Black Wraith, Berlin 1945, Gorilla the Chinchilla, Black Hitler and many others. He earned a bachelor's degree in Illustration and a master's degree in Sequential Art. He enjoys writing, drawing comics, storyboarding, illustrating children's books and talking about himself in the third person. You can find his work on the interwebs at www.michaelleeharris.tumblr.com.