Longlisted for the UKLA 2018 Book Award
In a Nutshell: Loss, friendship and the light of re-finding your way | An exceptional novel about grief, guilt and finding solace in celebrating loved ones’ lives.
I adored the author’s haunting southern gothic-spiced debut (The Serpent King), and the same exquisite storytelling shines through here from the opening pages, when seventeen-year-old Carver reveals that his three best friends, Mars, Blake and Eli, were killed in a car crash as the driver, Mars, replied to Carver’s text.
Collectively, they were the “Sauce Crew”, four creative teenagers with exciting futures on their near horizons, but now three lives have been cut short, and it feels to Carver as if his life is over too. He’s shattered by grief, and then a criminal investigation into the accident exacerbates his turmoil.
But there’s hope to be had from the special memorial days suggested by Blake’s adorable, wise Nana Betsy.
The characterisation is masterful, blending painterly personal detail with broader strokes that lay universalities bare, and the writing expresses emotional rawness - the choke of Carver's panic attacks, the blinding thunderstorm of his nightmares - with a powerful punch. Jeff Zentner is the real deal. ~ Joanne Owen
"Gorgeous, heartbreaking, and ultimately life-affirming." -Nicola Yoon, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Everything, Everything.
| Suitable For: | |
| Other Genres: | |
| Recommendations: |
Text me back. That's the last message Carver Briggs will ever send his three best friends, Mars, Eli, and Blake. He never thought that it would lead to their death.Now Carver can't stop blaming himself for the accident and even worse, a powerful judge is pressuring the district attorney to open up a criminal investigation. Luckily, Carver has some unexpected allies: Eli's girlfriend, the only person to stand by him at school; Dr.
The LoveReading4Kids Editorial Team have read and reviewed Goodbye Days and determined it is suitable for children aged 13-18 years old
Goodbye Days features in the following genres: Books Reviewed by our Reader Review Panels, Recommendations, Featured Books for 13+ readers, Romance / Relationship Stories, Children's and Young Adult Fiction, Children’s, Teenage and Educational, PSHE: Bereavement and Grief, Personal Social Health Economic (PSHE), PSHE: Siblings, PSHE: Family Issues, Recommended Children's eBooks, Featured Books for Young Adults
Paperback, Hardback. Not Available.
Goodbye Days was written by Jeff Zentner and published by Crown Books for Young Readers an imprint of Random House Children's Books
Goodbye Days has 416 pages
