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A Semi-Definitive List of Worst Nightmares

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A Semi-Definitive List of Worst Nightmares

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Overview

From the author of Our Chemical Hearts comes the hilarious, reality-bending tale of two outsiders facing their greatest fears about life and love—one debilitating phobia at a time.

Cover may vary.

Ever since Esther Solar’s grandfather was cursed by Death, everyone in her family has been doomed to suffer one great fear in their lifetime. Esther’s father is agoraphobic and hasn’t left the basement in six years, her twin brother can’t be in the dark without a light on, and her mother is terrified of bad luck.

The Solars are consumed by their fears and, according to the legend of the curse, destined to die from them.

Esther doesn’t know what her great fear is yet (nor does she want to), a feat achieved by avoiding pretty much everything. Elevators, small spaces and crowds are all off-limits. So are haircuts, spiders, dolls, mirrors and three dozen other phobias she keeps a record of in her semi-definitive list of worst nightmares.

Then Esther is pickpocketed by Jonah Smallwood, an old elementary school classmate. Along with her phone, money and a fruit roll-up she’d been saving, Jonah also steals her list of fears. Despite the theft, Esther and Jonah become friends, and he sets a challenge for them: in an effort to break the curse that has crippled her family, they will meet every Sunday of senior year to work their way through the list, facing one terrifying fear at a time, including one that Esther hadn’t counted on: love.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780399546600
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	09/04/2018
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	416
Sales rank:	148,631
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.10(h) x 1.20(d)
Age Range:	14 - 17 Years

About the Author

Krystal Sutherland was born and raised in Townsville, Australia—an inhospitable land where crocodiles, snakes, and jellyfish are always on the prowl. She grew up living directly across the road from the local library and spent almost every day after school (and weekends, too) having adventures between the pages of books (mainly because it was too dangerous to go outside).

She moved to Sydney for college (and safety), where she cut her writing teeth as the editor of the student magazine at the University of New South Wales. She kept gathering tales as an exchange student in Hong Kong and as a foreign correspondent in Amsterdam. Her first book, Our Chemical Hearts, was released in 2016, and was published in over twenty countries.

Her three greatest fears are heights, dark caves . . . and (perhaps worst of all) frogs.

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Excerpted from "A Semi-Definitive List of Worst Nightmares"
by .
Copyright © 2018 Krystal Sutherland.
Excerpted by permission of Penguin Young Readers Group.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

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Praise for A Semi-Definitive List of Worst Nightmares:
An Amazon Editor's Favorite YA Book for Fall 2017
An Amazon September Best of the Month Pick — YA/Teens
A Hello Giggles Best of September Pick
A Bustle Best of September YA Pick
A 2017 B&N Best Young Adult Book

★ “Imbue[d] with energy, fascinating histories, wisps of humor and, ultimately, grace. . . Equal parts inspiring and good fun.”—The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, starred review

“[A] bewitching book . . . Sutherland's fertile imagination makes this book a deep dive into the intricacies of family, friends, and personal history. . . . A fresh and compelling look at mental illness.”—Kirkus Reviews

“[A] darkly ironic tale about an offbeat dysfunctional family.”—Publishers Weekly

“Rainbow Rowell devotees, John Green junkies, and fans of This Song Will Save Your Life by Leila Sales will find a lot to love here.”—School Library Journal

“[I]mmediately hooks readers . . . Libraries should purchase this for readers looking for something quite out of the ordinary.”—VOYA

“Dark, magical, and humorous, this is a quirky and cohesive novel about fear, depression, and obsession with death.”—Booklist

“[A] magical take on mental illness that feels very real.”—Bustle

“The story is fantastic. Making the most of magic realism and with a perfectly paced plot, easy-to-love characters, and a touching array of interesting and relevant topics, Sutherland’s book should be on everyone’s bookshelves…an alluring exploration of the human mental landscape.”—The Nerd Daily

“Entirely pure pleasure, a sweet and heartfelt story of love, fear, and mental illness. It’s funny and touching in all the best ways.”—Vox

Praise for Our Chemical Hearts:
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“The most romantic read of the season is an arguably anti-YA story… It’s the complex chemistry between Henry and Grace that touches the heart and doesn’t let go.”—USA Today

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“This much-buzzed-about debut captures the messy, awkward, all-consuming emotions of a teen’s first love.”—Entertainment Weekly, Fall Books Preview

“This magnificent debut from 26-year-old Australian author Krystal Sutherland tracks the unlikely romance of Henry Page and Grace Town, two very different teens chosen to edit their high school paper together…You could probably learn a thing or two from [Henry’s] and Grace’s emotional odyssey.”—Teen Vogue, “October’s Best New YA Books”

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From the Publisher

07/17/2017
Each member of 17-year-old Esther Solar’s family is consumed by a different fear. Terrified to leave the house, her father has holed himself up in the basement for six years. Her mother, a believer in ghosts and bad luck, has become addicted to gambling. And due to Esther’s twin brother’s intense fear of the dark, their house is lit 24/7. Esther believes that her family’s propensity for these phobias stems from a curse bestowed on her grandfather years ago, and she dreads discovering a latent terror that will overtake her. Then Jonah, an elementary school acquaintance turned pickpocket, offers to help Esther confront and conquer 50 fears on a list she has assembled. In a darkly ironic tale about an offbeat dysfunctional family, Sutherland (Our Chemical Hearts) gives mixed messages about fate, death, and mental disorders; the supernatural elements of the novel feel incongruous beside Esther’s growing understanding of psychological illnesses and her tendency to hide her true self from the world. Though some characters undergo various forms of salvation, the book’s resolution is unsettling. Ages 14–up. Agent: Catherine Drayton, Inkwell Management. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

08/01/2017
Gr 9 Up—Esther's family is cursed; according to her grandfather, everyone Esther loves is doomed to be killed by the thing of which they are most afraid. Her twin Eugene is terrified of the dark, her mother is a superstitious compulsive gambler, and her father is agoraphobic and hasn't left the basement in six years. Esther's fears are elucidated in her "Semi-Definitive List of Worst Nightmares." After reconnecting with her elementary school valentine Jonah, her list is stolen by said valentine, and the recovery of the list leads to a relationship between the two. As Esther comes to trust Jonah, they work together to overcome her fears, one by one, by facing them directly. Lobsters, graveyards, and heights are a few of the anxieties they tackle together, with Jonah filming the process and, unbeknownst to her posting it to YouTube. Esther, Jonah, and her family are complex and lovable characters fighting their individual demons. Woven throughout is a subplot concerning death incarnate that somehow manages to lighten the tone of the novel. VERDICT Rainbow Rowell devotees, John Green junkies, and fans of This Song Will Save Your Life by Leila Sales will find a lot to love here.—Deidre Winterhalter, Oak Park Public Library, IL

School Library Journal

2017-07-17
In some ways, fear can keep you safe, but for the Solar family, fear is what keeps them from fully living.When Esther Solar meets Jonah Smallwood at a bus stop, he doesn't recognize her at first. They were 8 the last time they saw each other. This was before Esther's brother, Eugene, became pathologically frightened of the dark, before her father retreated to the basement, and before her mother became addicted to gambling and superstition. Together, the white girl and the black boy confront Esther's list of fears one by one in the hopes of attracting Death, otherwise known as Jack Horowitz, and releasing her family from the curse she believes dooms her family to death by fear. What Esther doesn't know is that Jonah struggles with his own kind of curse. It's a bewitching book about the love shared with family, damaged and all, and the multitude of ways in which mental illness manifests in daily life. Sutherland's fertile imagination makes this book a deep dive into the intricacies of family, friends, and personal history. The characters are fully distinct and genuine, and the dips into a historical narrative lend an essential veritas to the story. By combining the harsh experience of severe mental illness with a light magical touch, the author creates a space for readers to gain new perspective on what it's like to live with real demons. Resources on mental illness and an urgent exhortation that there's no shame in seeking help follow. A fresh and compelling look at mental illness. (Fiction. 14-18)

Kirkus Reviews

A Semi-Definitive List of Worst Nightmares

A Semi-Definitive List of Worst Nightmares

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Paperback(Reprint)

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