FEBRUARY 2017 - AudioFile
Narrator Michael Crouch’s tonal changes are crucial to the story of Carver, a 17-year-old whose texting has contributed to the death of his three best friends. Crouch expresses Carver’s regret and grief. Fear adds to this uncomfortable mix when a judge, one of the boys’ fathers, demands a criminal investigation. Crouch relieves Carver’s anguish with glints of humor that are fully realized in the flashbacks of his adventures with his friends. Crouch equally succeeds with the secondary characters. There is wisdom from his therapist and solace in his family—and from Jesmyn, the girlfriend of one of his friends. As Carver spends three “goodbye days” with his friends’ families, there are heartbreaking contrasts of anger and forgiveness. Crouch’s shifting tones highlight the many aspects of grief and the power of connection. S.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine
Publishers Weekly
★ 01/09/2017
Carver Briggs already feels responsible when his three best friends are killed in a car accident after he sent a “Where are you guys?” text message to the driver. Now it seems as though the whole town wants him to be prosecuted, and he’s having debilitating panic attacks. When one friend’s grandmother suggests they pay tribute to the deceased by spending a “goodbye day” swapping stories and doing what he loved, Carver finds a cathartic way to atone for his perceived sins. From the opening line, Zentner (The Serpent King) expertly channels Carver’s distinctive voice as a 17-year-old writer turned “funeral expert” who argues with himself about girls and retains glimmers of easy wit despite the weight of his grief and guilt. Flashbacks and daydreams capture the jovial spirit of the four members of the so-called Sauce Crew, glimpses of sophomore shenanigans interspersed with poignant admissions only best friends would share. Racial tensions, spoiled reputations, and broken homes all play roles in an often raw meditation on grief and the futility of entertaining what-ifs when faced with awful, irreversible events. Ages 14–up. Agent: Charlie Olsen, Inkwell Management. (Mar.)
From the Publisher
"Jeff Zentner, you perfectly fill the John-Green-sized hole in our heart." —Justine Magazine
“Evocative, heartbreaking, and beautifully written." —Buzzfeed
"Masterful." —Teen Vogue
“Tender, honest, moving, and lyrical. Zentner is the real thing.” —Benjamin Alire Sáenz, winner of the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction and Printz Honor winner
An Indie Next List Selection
"Zentner does an excellent job in creating empathetic characters, especially his protagonist Carver, a budding writer whose first-person account of his plight is artful evidence of his talent."—Booklist, Starred
"Racial tensions, spoiled reputations, and broken homes all play roles in an often raw meditation on grief and the futility of entertaining what-ifs when faced with awful, irreversible events."—Publishers Weekly, Starred
"[E]xquisite and tragic." –Shelf Awareness, Starred
"[A] novel full of wisdom." —Kirkus
"[The] kind of intelligent, intense, and life-affirming tale that will resonate with teens seeking depth and honesty." —SLJ
"An organic, frequently raw narrative." –Horn Book
"Tissues not optional." —The Bulletin
Praise for Jeff Zentner’s The Serpent King
A William C. Morris Award Winner
A New York Times Notable Book
An Amazon Best Book of the Year
A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year
A Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year
A BuzzFeed Best YA Book of the Year
An Indie Next List Top Ten Selection
A Paste Magazine and Popcrush Most Anticipated YA Book of the Year
A Publishers Weekly Spring Flying Start
"Move over, John Green; Zentner is coming for you." —The New York Public Library
“Will fill the infinite space that was left in your chest after you finished The Perks of Being a Wallflower.” —Book Riot
“A story about friendship, family and forgiveness, it’s as funny and witty as it is utterly heartbreaking.” —Paste Magazine
“A brutally honest portrayal of teen life . . . [and] a love letter to the South from a man who really understands it.” —Mashable
“Zentner’s great achievement — particularly impressive for a first novel — is to make us believe three such different people could be friends. He also manages to blend a dank, oppressive, Flannery O’Connor-esque sense of place with humor and optimism .... I adored all three of these characters and the way they talked to and loved one another.” —New York Times Book Review
School Library Journal
01/01/2017
Gr 9 Up—It was just a text: Carver wanted to know when his three best friends were going to pick him up. But those three best friends got into a car accident and never made it to him. Carver can't stop blaming himself and his text for their deaths, and things get worse after a judge is also interested in pointing the finger at him. Carver juggles his own feelings of guilt and the blame others direct at him as he decides to honor the memory of his friends through cathartic "goodbye days." Saving Carver (and the readers) from complete despair is Jesmyn, the former girlfriend of one of his deceased friends, and Dr. Mendez, a new therapist who help him wade through life after the funerals. Zentner is yanking heartstrings here in this painful but compelling narrative. Although sprinkled with lighter stories of the friends in happier times, this is a weighty, well-crafted novel—the kind of intelligent, intense, and life-affirming tale that will resonate with teens seeking depth and honesty. VERDICT Recommended as a first purchase for school and public libraries. Hand this to readers looking to explore the somber and complex realities of life, especially responsibility, fractured relationships, and the butterfly effect of consequences.—Emily Moore, Camden County Library System, NJ
FEBRUARY 2017 - AudioFile
Narrator Michael Crouch’s tonal changes are crucial to the story of Carver, a 17-year-old whose texting has contributed to the death of his three best friends. Crouch expresses Carver’s regret and grief. Fear adds to this uncomfortable mix when a judge, one of the boys’ fathers, demands a criminal investigation. Crouch relieves Carver’s anguish with glints of humor that are fully realized in the flashbacks of his adventures with his friends. Crouch equally succeeds with the secondary characters. There is wisdom from his therapist and solace in his family—and from Jesmyn, the girlfriend of one of his friends. As Carver spends three “goodbye days” with his friends’ families, there are heartbreaking contrasts of anger and forgiveness. Crouch’s shifting tones highlight the many aspects of grief and the power of connection. S.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
2016-11-24
Seventeen-year-old Carver Briggs feels responsible for the deaths of his best friends and must deal with his own life, now forever altered. "Where are you guys? Text me back," Carver texted his friend Mars, who replied, or at least started to, as proven by the half-composed text found on Mars' phone at the crash site. Mars had been driving while texting, and his car smashed into a semi on the highway, killing Mars, Blake, and Eli. Carver feels responsible, but is he responsible? It turns out that under Tennessee law (Nashville is the setting for the story), Carver might be held as "criminally negligent," since he knew Mars was driving and knew Mars would reply, even though he never intended to kill anyone. Zentner's novel peels back the many layers of feeling that Carver experiences as he deals with his family, the families of his friends, and school, the present-tense narration putting readers directly in Carver's head. However, although Carver is an unusually bright student with a supportive family and therapist, his voice is at times too adult, too didactic in delivering long passages of wise reflections about life normally gained from more time and experience. Still, it is a novel full of wisdom, even if Carver himself hasn't had time to acquire all of it himself. Carver is white, as are Eli and Blake; Mars is black. A fine cautionary tale and journey toward wisdom, poignant and realistic. (Fiction. 14-18)
