Grendel's Guide to Love and War
A. E. Kaplan
- The
- Perks
- of
- Being
- a
- Wallflower
- meets
- Revenge
- of
- the
- Nerds
- in
- this
- tale
- of
- a
- teen
- misfit
- who
- seeks
- to
- take
- down
- the
- bro
- next
- door,
- but
- ends
- up
- falling
- for
- his
- enemy’s
- sister
- and
- uncovering
- difficult
- truths
- about
- his
- family
- in
- the
- process.Tom
- Grendel
- lives
- a
- quiet
- life—writing
- in
- his
- notebooks,
- mowing
- lawns
- for
- his
- elderly
- neighbors,
- and
- pining
- for
- Willow,
- a
- girl
- next
- door
- who
- rejects
- the
- “manic-pixie-dream”
- label.
- But
- when
- Willow’s
- brother,
- Rex
- (the
- bro-iest
- bro
- ever
- to
- don
- a
- jockstrap),
- starts
- throwing
- wild
- parties,
- the
- idyllic
- senior
- citizens’
- community
- where
- they
- live
- is
- transformed
- into
- a
- war
- zone.
- Tom
- is
- rightfully
- pissed—his
- dad
- is
- an
- Iraq
- vet,
- and
- the
- noise
- from
- the
- parties
- triggers
- his
- PTSD—so
- he
- comes
- up
- with
- a
- plan
- to
- end
- the
- parties
- for
- good.
- But
- of
- course,
- it’s
- not
- that
- simple.One
- retaliation
- leads
- to
- another,
- and
- things
- quickly
- escalate
- out
- of
- control,
- driving
- Tom
- and
- Willow
- apart,
- even
- as
- the
- parties
- continue
- unabated.
- Add
- to
- that
- an
- angsty
- existential
- crisis
- born
- of
- selectively
- reading
- his
- sister’s
- Philosophy
- 101
- coursework,
- a
- botched
- break-in
- at
- an
- artisanal
- pig
- farm,
- and
- ten
- years
- of
- unresolved
- baggage
- stemming
- from
- his
- mother’s
- death
- .
- .
- .
- and
- the
- question
- isn’t
- so
- much
- whether
- Tom
- Grendel
- will
- win
- the
- day
- and
- get
- the
- girl,
- but
- whether
- he’ll
- survive
- intact."Deep
- and
- uproarious
- all
- at
- once
- .
- .
- .
- A
- clever
- spin
- on
- a
- weighty
- classic."
- —Kirkus,
- starred
- review"An
- outstanding
- YA
- novel
- balancing
- comedy
- with
- substantial
- themes
- of
- love,
- death,
- and
- healing."
- —SLJ,
- starred review
