Waiting on Wednesday: Sick by Tom Leveen

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:

 

Sick 
by Tom Leveen
Published by Amulet Books
Publication Date: October 1, 2013
Pages: 288
Goodreads










(from Goodreads)
Breakfast Club meets The Walking Dead as a group of unlikely allies tries to survive a deadly outbreak.

Brian and his friends are not part of the cool crowd. They’re the misfits and the troublemakers—the ones who jump their high school’s fence to skip class regularly. So when a deadly virus breaks out, they’re the only ones with a chance of surviving.

The virus turns Brian’s classmates and teachers into bloodthirsty attackers who don’t die easily. The whole school goes on lockdown, but Brian and his best friend, Chad, are safe (and stuck) in the theater department—far from Brian’s sister, Kenzie, and his ex-girlfriend with a panic attack problem, Laura. Brian and Chad, along with some of the theater kids Brian had never given the time of day before, decide to find the girls and bring them to the safety of the theater. But it won’t be easy, and it will test everything they thought they knew about themselves and their classmates.

Why I'm Waiting

Breakfast Club meets The Walking Dead.

That Is All. 

Oh, and it's Tom Leveen.

Now that's all.

 

Review: Manicpixiedreamgirl by Tom Leveen

 

Manicpixiedreamgirl

by Tom Leveen

Published by Random House Children's Book

Publication Date: April 23, 2013
Pages: 256
Source: ARC from Author via NetGalley






 


(from Goodreads)
Sometimes the most dramatic scenes in a high school theater club are the ones that happen between the actors and crew off stage.

Seventeen-year-old Tyler Darcy's dream of being a writer is starting to feel very real now that he's sold his first short story to a literary journal. He should be celebrating its publication with his two best friends who've always had his back, but on this night, a steady stream of texts from his girlfriend Sidney keep intruding. So do the memories of his dream girl, Becky, who's been on his mind a little too much since the first day of high school. Before the night is over, Ty might just find the nerve to stop all the obsessing and finally take action. 

My Thoughts


Sometimes the most dramatic scenes in a high school theater club are the ones that happen between the actors and crew off stage.

With this sentence, I was hooked and knew that I must read this book. Tom Leveen made me a believer in his talent with his novel Zero and amazed me even more with manicpixiedreamgirl. His writing is dynamic and honest and REAL. He draws the reader in with his character development and overwhelms us with his storytelling. Pure genius. Leveen just gets it right. 

 

The story jumps right in letting the reader know that the main character Tyler is caught up this imagined love affair with is dream girl, Becky, while still maintaining a relationship with his current girlfriend, Sydney. He's struggling with his need to finally tell her how he really feels because he know that it will change everything. Everything.

I loved how the story takes place in a single night with Tyler out with his friends celebrating having a story published. We get to see how Tyler comes to love Becky, but end up with Sydney through flashbacks of the past few years.  Leveen's style of writing was seemless and it felt like this is exactly how we, as readers, were supposed to see the story unfold.

I appreciated that the two girls weren’t really pitted against each other - Sydney (Syd) wasn’t a girl that you hateful girlfriend that you begged Tyler to dump, and you didn’t feel sympathy for her either when you realized that Tyler has mind on another girl - Syd was a girl who had it together. She saw the situation as it was and maintained some dignity. If anything, her poise and acceptance of this reality added to the love/hate relationship that you have for Tyler. Love him because of his devotion to this other girl, Becky, who his sister claimed was “damaged” and didn’t take advantage of her, but hated him ( well not really hated him) for jerking Syd around for so long. And Becky who seemed so unattainable to Tyler, she didn't play games with him. 

There is a genuine friendship between Tyler and Becky. At first, he is intrigued by her unusual quirkiness, but once he joins the drama club and they work on plays together - their friendship begins to become authentic. She's still guarded and doesn't let him in completely, and he doesn't ask questions that he doesn't want to know the answers to, but they become as close as they will allow themselves to be.

As much as this book had me entralled, turning page after page and unable to read it fast enough, there were moments that were difficult to read. There were a couple of moments of horrific conversations between Becky and her parents that forced me to put the book down and take a deep breath before I could continue reading. It was that affecting.

I've read many books this year that I have absolutely loved and Manicpixiedreamgirl is no different. Since I can't and won't pick a favorite, I'll just add this one to that list. (I'm pretty sure I said almost this exact same thing about Zero) Manicpixiedreamgirl is a gem of a book and one that I hope makes it into the hands of many readers. 

Disclaimer: I received this Advanced Readers Copy for review from the author and publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. I did not receive any compensation for providing this review. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

Love My Indie with Author Tom Leveen

Love My Indie is a feature where fellow bloggers, readers, and authors share their favorite independent bookstores. I love the feeling I get when I go into an independent bookstore - like it is filled with hidden treasures just waiting for me to find them.

Showing some Indie Love today is:

Tom Leveen

Author of Party, Zero, and manicpixiedreamgirl

 

I love my indie bookstore, Changing Hands!

Changing Hands used to be a little two-storey place on a college-town street called Mill Avenue when I was growing up. I met Brian Jacques (the Redwall series) there once, and it was truly inspiring. Now that I think about it, I believe I model my own school visits essentially on how he presented his books that day. So this indie bookstore has been influencing me since long before I ever attempted to publish.

Changing Hands moved to another part of town, and I didn’t think much about it for awhile, not until a random visit in which my wife and I ran into one of their book buyers, Brandi. Brandi—and then the rest of the staff, like Faith, Stephanie, Eddie, Robyn, Danielle, and everyone else there—took trembly, fragile little baby-bird new-author-me under their wings and shepherded my first novel, Party, through the paces to becoming a real live book on their shelves. They do this for tons of authors. Plus their list of authors who have done events there is tremendous. For instance, if I remember correctly, they were the first store to host a newbie debut author named Stephanie Meyer. (I think there were about, oh, thirty or forty people there…)

Tom Leveen at Changing Hands in 2012 (photo credit: Alecia Brouwer)

I’ve met all of my local author friends through Changing Hands, and gotten to do great events with them over the years. The store hosts an annual event called YAllapalooza, an all-day affair with young adult authors teaching classes and hosting panels, then having a big pizza party and game night at the store afterward. They connect with schools all over town, and there’s an event there of one kind or another pretty much every single night. The ambiance is bright and welcoming, well-stocked with new and used books, small gifts, and a calendar of events to die for.

But the real standout of Changing Hands is the staff. These are readers and lovers of all kinds of literature, and they will do anything and everything to find you just the right book. I had to remind myself to even refer to them as “staff” just now, because when I go, it’s hugs all around. These are my friends, and I wouldn’t dream of launching a new book anywhere but there. It is exactly the kind of place where aspiring writers should go, because bookstores are very much a part of the publishing world. We creative types tend to forget that we’re in business, selling products. Changing Hands is the perfect synthesis of business and art.

Tom at Changing Hands for the launch for Zero (photo credit: Alecia Brouwer)

 

 

I would still be a publishing author without this gem of an indie store…but I’d be a lonely published author!

You can (and should) check them out at www.changinghands.com and on Twitter @changinghands

Tom, thank you so much for sharing your favorite bookstore. Changing Hands sounds like a wonderful bookstore that takes care of both their authors and their readers. I will probably never have the opportunity to visit there, but just knowing that a bookstore like this exists is enough. 

Tom Leveen is the author of Party, Zero, and the soon to be published manicpixiedreamgirl 

MANICPIXIEDREAMGIRL

Truth is stranger than fiction...but not as cute.

 

Arriving April 23, 2013 in bookstores everywhere.

www.tomleveen.com
Twitter: @tomleveen