The geography of you and me

Title:

Author:

Smith, Jennifer E., 1980- author.

Summary:

"Sparks fly when sixteen-year-old Lucy Patterson and seventeen-year-old Owen Buckley meet on an elevator rendered useless by a New York City blackout. Soon after, the two teenagers leave the city, but as they travel farther away from each other geographically, they stay connected emotionally, in this story set over the course of one year"--Provided by publisher.

Physical Description:

337 p. ; 20 cm.

Subject Term:

Voyages and travels -- Juvenile fiction.

Social classes -- Juvenile fiction.

Electric power failures -- Juvenile fiction.

Publisher:

Scholastic Inc.,

Publication Date:

2014

ISBN:

9780316254779

9780545804943

Publication Information:

New York : Scholastic Inc., 2014.

Call Number:

YA SMITH

Holds: Copies:

Available:*

Item Barcode	Collection	Call Number	Status	Item Holds
33607002887670	Young Adult	SMITH	Searching... Unknown	Searching... Unavailable

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Summary

Lucy lives on the twenty-fourth floor. Owen lives in the basement. It's fitting, then, that they meet in the middle -- stuck between two floors of a New York City apartment building, on an elevator rendered useless by a citywide blackout. After they're rescued, Lucy and Owen spend the night wandering the darkened streets and marveling at the rare appearance of stars above Manhattan. But once the power is back, so is reality. Lucy soon moves abroad with her parents, while Owen heads out west with his father.

The brief time they spend together leaves a mark. And as their lives take them to Edinburgh and to San Francisco, to Prague and to Portland, Lucy and Owen stay in touch through postcards, occasional e-mails, and phone calls. But can they -- despite the odds -- find a way to reunite?

Smartly observed and wonderfully romantic, Jennifer E. Smith's new novel shows that the center of the world isn't necessarily a place. Sometimes, it can be a person.

Author Notes

Jennifer E. Smith is the author of The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight , The Storm Makers , You Are Here and The Comeback Season . She earned her master's degree in creative writing from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, and currently works as an editor in New York City.

Reviews (2)

School Library Journal Review

Gr 7 Up-Lucy and Owen meet in a stalled elevator in their New York City apartment building when a blackout affects the northeast. The two are rescued and spend the remaining night wandering the dark streets, admiring the star-filled sky, and picnicking on the roof. The next morning the power returns and with it the reality of their situation. The two are pulled in opposite directions as Lucy and her family move to London and Owen and his father trek westward across the United States. Although they are separated by thousands of miles, the teens can't forget each other. Though fate initially brought them together, it is up to them to engineer a way to meet again. This contemporary YA novel focuses on themes of family, life after loss, and long-distance relationships. Readers will enjoy experiencing different cities and countries through the protagonists' eyes. Fans of Sarah Dessen, Elizabeth Eulberg, and Susane Colasanti will enjoy Smith's latest meet-cute romance.-Tiffany Davis, Mount Saint Mary College, Newburgh, NY (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Publisher's Weekly Review

Owen and Lucy meet when they get stuck in a New York City elevator during a widespread power outage. They quickly connect, spending an intimate (but chaste) night looking at stars from the roof of their building. When the electricity returns, so do real-life complications: Owen and his father, devastated by his mother's recent death, decide to drive west for a fresh start; meanwhile, Lucy moves to Scotland for her father's work. At first, they stay in touch-Owen mails sweet postcards, and Lucy sends "slightly rambling" emails-but they begin to doubt the strength of their connection ("How long could a single night really be expected to last?" Lucy wonders). Smith (This Is What Happy Looks Like) has written a sweet, moody story that can also be deeply heartbreaking, as when Owen and his father return to pack up their old house, only to find "the real measures of the lives here were now well and truly gone." There are plenty of romantic sigh-worthy moments, too, but it's Owen and Lucy's individual journeys that really hit home. Ages 12-up. Agent: Jennifer Joel, ICM. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.