By Len Vlahos (author)
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In a Nutshell: Love, loss, reality TV and the real value of life | Powerful novel exploring the turmoil that arises when a dying dad sells the last months of his life to a reality TV show.
Fifteen-year-old Jackie Stone is an introvert who lives in anonymity online and “loved her father. She loved him a lot”. Of course, Jackie is utterly devastated when her dad, Jared, announces that he’s been diagnosed with terminal brain cancer and only has a few months to live. But, rather than dwelling on his own demise, Jared’s worries are for his family.
He knows they won’t survive on his wife’s income alone, so he decides to auction off his life. Among the hotchpotch of people who bid is egotistical TV executive Ethan Overbee, who knows a hit show when he sees one. And so, for a big fee, the family’s home is taken over by cameras, their every move – and Jared’s decline - broadcast to millions across the nation.
While the novel confronts big ethical issues head-on, there’s also plenty of humour and action (the grippingly madcap plot involves a psycho billionaire boy, a fame-hungry Internet-addicted nun and Jackie’s supportive Russian friend from an online forum). Ultimately, though, this is a novel about the importance of memories, and doing the right thing by loved ones.
“Love,” according to Jackie’s mom, “can make us weak-kneed and wobbly, but when it needs to, it can make us stronger than steel”. Heartbreaking, life-affirming and highly recommended for fans of Jandy Nelson, John Green and Jennifer Niven. ~ Joanne Owen
"A weird, sardonic delight with the shape of an allegory and the heart of a joyful song." --Brenna Yovanoff, New York Times bestselling author of The ReplacementIn this brilliantly written tragicomedy from acclaimed Morris finalist Len Vlahos comes a story about a girl whose dying father does the unthinkable--puts his life up for auction online. When fifteen-year-old Jackie discovers that her father has been diagnosed with a terminal brain tumor, her whole world starts to crumble. She can't imagine how she'll live without him.
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"A weird, sardonic delight with the shape of an allegory and the heart of a joyful song." --Brenna Yovanoff, New York Times bestselling author of The Replacement In this brilliantly written tragicomedy from acclaimed Morris finalist Len Vlahos comes a story about a girl whose dying father does the unthinkable--puts his life up for auction online. When fifteen-year-old Jackie discovers that her father has been diagnosed with a terminal brain tumor, her whole world starts to crumble. She can't imagine how she'll live without him.
Then, in a desperate act to secure his family's future, Jackie's father does the unthinkable--he puts his life up for auction on eBay. Jackie can do nothing but watch and wait as an odd assortment of bidders, some with nefarious intentions, drive the price up higher. The fate of her entire family hangs in the balance.
But no one can predict how the auction will finally end, or any of the very public fallout that ensues. Life as Jackie knows it is about to change forever . . . "Surprising, original, political, and deeply affecting . . . It is one of those rare works of art that keeps you guessing up to the very last page." --Leila Sales, author of This Song Will Save Your Life "It will tear you apart, and yet it's an absolute joy." --Adi Alsaid, author of Let's Get Lost and Never, Always, Sometimes
Surprising, original, political, and deeply affecting... It is one of those rare works of art that keeps you guessing up to the very last page. Leila Sales, author of This Song Will Save Your Life
It will tear you apart, and yet it's an absolute joy. Adi Alsaid, author of Let's Get Lost
Vlahos balances a precarious, heartbreaking, and wholly 21st-century premise with a compulsively readable and well-plotted story. Janet Geddis, Avid Bookshop, Athens, GA
Once again, Vlahos strikes all the right chords... You know these people and you want to know what happens to them beyond the story. Paul Hanson, General Manager at Village Books in Bellingham, WA
Len Vlahos has pulled off a brilliant exploration of intimacy in modern society... [H]umorous, while being poignant and haunting at the same time. Allison Hill, CEO of Vroman's Bookstore and Book Soup in Southern California
Praise for Scar Boys:
A wry, stylish tale. The New York Times Sunday Book Review
Distinguished in every way. -- starred review School Library Journal
Etches its way onto the heart and leaves a mark. Kirkus Reviews
Len Vlahos dropped out of NYU film school in the mid Eighties to play guitar and write songs for Woofing Cookies, a punk-pop four piece that toured up and down the East Coast, and had two singles and one full-length LP on Midnight Records. After the band broke up, he followed his other passion, books. He is the author of The Scar Boys , a William C. Morris Award finalist and a #1 Indie Next pick, and Scar Girl , the book's sequel. Len lives in Denver with his wife and two young sons, where he owns the Tattered Cover Book Store.
A Calamity of Mannerings
When fifteen-year-old Jackie discovers that her father has been diagnosed with a terminal brain tumor, her whole world starts to crumble. She can't imagine how she'll live without him.Then, in a desperate act to secure his family's future, Jackie's father does the unthinkable--he puts his life up for auction on eBay.
The LoveReading4Kids Editorial Team have read and reviewed Life in a Fishbowl and determined it is suitable for children aged 13-14 years old
Life in a Fishbowl features in the following genres: Books Reviewed by our Reader Review Panels, Recommendations, Stories about Family and Friends, Children's and Young Adult Fiction, Children’s, Teenage and Educational, Funny, Recommended Children's eBooks, Featured Books for 13+ readers
Paperback. Not Available.
Life in a Fishbowl was written by Len Vlahos and published by Bloomsbury Young Adult an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing
Life in a Fishbowl has 336 pages
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