Published: July 28, 2010
Debut YA Novel by Steve Brezenoff Demonstrates That, in Life, Nothing is Absolute
MINNEAPOLIS - (BUSINESS WIRE) - Life as a teenager is complicated, but at least there are a few
constants. For a trio of tenth-graders, the disorder of their lives has
so far left their awkward but familiar friendship untouched. But, just
like a tiny mathematical symbol that can unhinge a whole equation, it's
the smallest detail that change everything. Written by Steve Brezenoff
and published by Carolrhoda Lab , a new line of distinctive fiction for
young adults from Carolrhoda Books, The Absolute Value of –1 explores
the limits of a person's perspective in gripping reality and the games
people play to hold on.
Lily, Noah, and Simon are not exactly the Three Musketeers. Getting high
together before and after school and occasionally getting wasted on the
weekends, the three coexist in a hazy equilibrium that can loosely be
called "friendship." Through the fog of drugs and adolescent apathy,
it's hard for any one of them to see how things really are. Lily, a good
girl gone bad after her parents' messy divorce, pines for Simon. Noah, a
notorious stoner who regularly fist fights his father, lusts after Lily.
And Simon...well, no one, least of all Simon himself, seems to know his
story.
As Simon's family crumbles after news of his father's cancer, as Noah
descends further into a life of doping and dealing, and as Lily finally
makes her move for Simon's love, the teenagers' perspectives of their
common world begin to shift. As allegiances and identities change, the
path toward reality-and the subtle details that alter it—proves more
painful than the three could imagine. And the homecoming of Simon's
beautiful and overly affectionate older sister, Suzanne, gives rise to
tensions that threaten the relationships between them all.
Through the voices of four distinct and achingly realistic characters,
Steve Brezenoff portrays the trauma and numbness of youth. In a
beautiful patchwork of narratives, The Absolute Value of –1 reveals
the fractured nature of truth that make any 'absolute' an absolute
impossibility.
Visit http://www.carolrhodalab.com
for a discussion guide and free downloads.
Available for
review at NetGalley! Sign up for your free account and download your
copy of The Absolute Value of -1 at www.netgalley.com.
About the Author
Steve Brezenoff is the author of
numerous series novels for young readers. This is his first YA novel.
Visit him at stevebrezenoff.blogspot.com.
Or, as Steve says, "I was born and raised in and around New York City,
and I lived in the tri-state area for over thirty years. But I met and
fell for a shiksa, and my exile began in earnest in March of 2006. Now
we live in Saint Paul, Minnesota, with our infant son and our scrappy,
smelly dog."
About the Publisher
Carolrhoda Lab is dedicated to
distinctive, provocative, boundary-pushing fiction for teens and their
sympathizers. Carolrhoda Lab probes and examines the young-adult
condition one novel at a time, affording YA authors and readers an
opportunity to explore and experiment with thoughts, ideas, and
paradigms in the human condition.
Carolrhoda Books is a division of
Lerner Publishing Group, which creates high-quality fiction and
nonfiction titles for children and young adults. Visit Lerner Publishing
Group's website at www.lernerbooks.com.
PUBLICATION DATE:
September 2010
$16.95 Hardcover, Jacketed
$12.71 eBook
Ages 12–18
HC:
978-0-7613-5417-8
EB: 978-0-7613-6220-3
296 Pages ◠5 ¼" x 7 ½"
To Purchase: Visit your local bookstore , order by phone at
800-328-4929, or visit us online at www.lernerbooks.com.
Follow us online:
Blog: http://carolrhoda.blogspot.com/
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twitter.com/LernerBooks
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Publishing Group
Lerner Publishing Group
Media contacts:
Lindsay
Matvick, 800-328-4929, x385
Senior Publicist
lmatvick@lernerbooks.com
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