Can't Say it Went to Plan

by Gabrielle Tozer

Overview

From the award-winning author of The Intern, Faking It and Remind Me How This Ends.

School's out.

Forget study, exams and mapping out the future.

For the next seven days, the only homework is partying with friends, making new ones and living in the moment.

There are no parents or curfews - and no rules.

Zoe, Samira and Dahlia are strangers, but they have something in common: their plans for a dream holiday after their final year of school are flipped upside-down before they even arrive at the beach.

From hooking up and heartache, to growing apart, testing friendships and falling in love, anything can go down this week.

PRAISE FOR REMIND ME HOW THIS ENDS

'Bursting with humour and heart, Gabrielle Tozer reflects the pain, pressures and pleasures of life between high school and what comes next.' - Will Kostakis, award-winning author of The First Third and The Sidekicks

'A tale full of heart with characters who - by the final page - feel like friends. Milo Dark is the boy next door I always wanted. Gabrielle Tozer has delivered a story with depth and heart. Milo and Layla have stayed in my head long after the final page.' - Rebecca Sparrow, author of Ask Me Anything and Find Your Tribe

'How refreshing to read a book in which the real love story is the one between a young girl and her mum. It's rare to see grief explored in teen fiction, rarer still to see it handled in such a nuanced way.' - Dannielle Miller, author of Loveability and CEO of Enlighten Education and Goodfellas

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781460760635
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	09/14/2021
Pages:	384
Sales rank:	1,038,971
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 7.70(h) x 1.10(d)
Age Range:	14 - 17 Years

About the Author

Gabrielle Tozer is an award-winning author, freelance writer and editor based in regional New South Wales. She is the author of seven books, including Can't Say It Went to Plan, Remind Me How This Ends, Melody Trumpet, Peas and Quiet, Faking It and The Intern, which won the 2015 State Library of Victoria's Gold Inky Award.

Gabrielle's non-fiction piece 'Lessons in Growing Up' was recently featured in the Teacher, Teacher Anthology, edited by Megan Daley, while her short story 'The Feeling from Over Here' was in the award-winning Begin, End, Begin: A #LoveOzYA Anthology. Gabrielle loves sharing her passion for storytelling and creativity with readers and aspiring writers, and has appeared at numerous events, including the Sydney Writers' Festival, the Somerset Festival of Literature, StoryFest Out West and the Children's Book Council of Australia's national conference.

The Unexpected Mess of It All is Gabrielle's latest young adult novel, and she is currently collaborating on a trio of picture books with award-winning illustrator Sophie Beer.

Say hello: gabrielletozer.com

Editorial Reviews

2021-09-01
It’s Schoolies Week, when Australian teens celebrate high school’s end.

Zoë, Samira, and Dahlia are off to the coast with their respective friends to celebrate their exams being over. Academically inclined Italian Australian Zoë plans to stay at a big hotel. At the last minute, her conservative mother forbids her to go, but she runs off anyway. Lebanese Australian Samira has lots of friends and a serious boyfriend, and she’s worked hard at her family’s bakery to earn money for the luxurious trip, complete with beach house, adventurous activities, and a plan to consummate her relationship on her birthday. But she gets a rude awakening when Zain dumps her, and her friends reveal their true colors. Her week is saved when she meets a zany trio of pop-star groupies from the house next door. Dahlia, who reads as White, is still mourning her best friend Stevie’s death. She’s staying at a hostel with two female friends, one of whom turns into something more. The three protagonists, unknown to one another, occasionally meet around town, mostly enjoy their week of partying—and even consider their plans for the future. Using a plot structure of alternating voices and day-by-day, sometimes hour-by-hour, updates, this realistic novel about teen angst and fun will appeal to those looking for something light with a serious underpinning.

An entertaining novel about personal issues and relationships unfolding during a wild vacation break. (Fiction. 13-17)

Kirkus Reviews