An award-winning, heartrending young middle grade novel from Barbara Park-the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Junie B. Jones series-just right for readers of Frindle, Love That Dog, The Lemonade War, and other classic young middle grade favorites. Kids aren't supposed to die. Phoebe's brother, Mick, was one of the funniest, coolest kids you'd ever meet-the kid who made you laugh until your stomach hurt, even if you were mad at him. The kid who freaked his and Phoebe's mom out by putting a ceramic eye in a defrosted chicken; who went trick-or-treating as Thomas Crapper, the inventor of the modern-day flush toilet; who did a wild solo dance in front of the entire school. He was the kid you'd want to be friends with. So how can he be gone? And how will Phoebe's family survive without him? Winner of 12 State Awards! An IRA-CBC Young Adults' Choice A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year A Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year * "Genius . . . excruciatingly real . . . powerful." -Publishers Weekly, starred "[A] wrenching story permeated with humor and hope." -School Library Journal For the Review section (please add the two reviews and the state awards below): "A very moving story about a terrific 12-year-old boy. By the end of the book, readers miss him, too." -Kirkus Reviews "Park skillfully interweaves humor and pain in this unique, utterly believable account of Phoebe's attempt to cope with a heartbreaking loss." -The Horn Book WINNER-Georgia Children's Book Award WINNER-Connecticut Nutmeg Book Award WINNER-Kansas William Allen White Children's Book Award WINNER-North Dakota Flicker Tale Children's Book Award WINNER-Rhode Island Children's Book Award WINNER-South Carolina Children's Book Award WINNER-Vermont Dorothy Canfield Fisher Book Award WINNER-Illinois Rebecca Caudill Young Readers' Book Award WINNER-Indiana Young Hoosier Book Award WINNER-Iowa Children's Choice Award WINNER-Minnesota Maud Hart Lovelace Book Award NOMINEE-Washington Evergreen Young Adult Book Award WINNER-Kentucky Bluegrass Master List

Author Biography

BARBARA PARK (1947-2013) is beloved by millions as the author of the wildly popular New York Times bestselling Junie B. Jones books, which have been translated into multiple languages and are time-honored staples in elementary school classrooms around the world. She is also the author of award-winning middle grade novels and bestselling picture books, including Skinnybones, Almost Starring Skinnybones, Mick Harte Was Here, and The Kid in the Red Jacket.