The Boomerang Effect
By Gordon Jack
3.5/5
()
About this ebook
A hilariously subversive YA debut that explores the meaning of friendship and loyalty, and also why you should avoid being trapped in a small space with an angry chicken. Perfect for fans of Andrew Smith’s Winger and Frank Portman’s King Dork.
It all started with a harmless prank. But now high school junior Lawrence Barry is one step away from reform school unless he participates in a mentorship program. His mentee? Spencer Knudsen, a Norwegian exchange student with Spock-like intelligence but the social skills of the periodic table.
Then disaster strikes. Homecoming Week. When someone dressed as the school Viking mascot starts destroying the fairytale-inspired floats, all suspicion falls on Lawrence. Add to the mix a demon Goth girl, a Renaissance LARPing group, an overzealous yearbook editor, and three vindictive chickens, and Lawrence soon realizes that his situation may be a little out of control. But Spencer seems to have some answers. In fact, Spencer may be the one friend Lawrence never knew he needed.
Gordon Jack
Gordon Jack always wanted to be a writer. In third grade, he put that on his “What I Want to Be When I Grow Up” list, just behind astronaut and professional dog walker. While working toward this goal, he had jobs as an advertising copywriter, English teacher, librarian, and semiprofessional dog walker. The Boomerang Effect is his first novel. He lives in San Francisco with his family. Visit him online at www.gordon-jack.com or on Twitter @gordojack.
Related to The Boomerang Effect
Related ebooks
Truth Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Diary of a Teenage Jewel Thief Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Evolution of Glory Loomis Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsYOU DON'T KNOW MY NAME Chapter Sampler Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLove and Leftovers Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Daughter of Eden Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Lost Marble Notebook of Forgotten Girl & Random Boy Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDear Life, You Suck Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Apple and Rain Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Great Upending Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Islanders Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDial Em for Murder Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Triple Threat Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Fallout Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Winter Place Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Trouble at Turtle Pond Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsIt's a Wonderful Death Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Anything You Want Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Turning Book 1: What Curiosity Kills Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Into the Parallel: Parallelogram, #1 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Secrets We Bury Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Edge Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5More Than Us Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Nothing Special Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5C, My Name Is Cal Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Obvious Game Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Just for Clicks Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Two Moons in August Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsStupid Fast Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Blank Confession Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
YA Social Themes For You
The Way I Used to Be Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Firekeeper's Daughter Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Out of Darkness Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Witch of Blackbird Pond: A Newbery Award Winner Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Better Than the Movies Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Hate U Give: A Printz Honor Winner Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Summer I Turned Pretty Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Giver: A Newbery Award Winner Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Thunderhead Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Little Prince: New Translation by Richard Mathews with Restored Original Art Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Toll Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Tweak: Growing Up on Methamphetamines Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Me and Earl and the Dying Girl: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Monster: A Printz Award Winner Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Daughter of the Pirate King Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Ace of Spades Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5SLAY Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Five Total Strangers Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5This Poison Heart Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Powerless Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Elsewhere: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This Is Where It Ends Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5They Both Die at the End Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Daughter of the Siren Queen Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Weight of Everything Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Delirium Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5All American Boys Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Poet X Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Gift for a Ghost: A Graphic Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Giver Quartet Omnibus Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for The Boomerang Effect
10 ratings2 reviews
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5While it moved quickly, I wasn't really invested overmuch in Lawrence's life. Told from his pov, we get a LOT of his opinions, but the writing isn't strong - nearly all of the characters aside from Lawrence (and Spencer, somewhat) are two-dimensional. There were some fun descriptions, but could benefit from more realized characters aside from the main.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The boomerang effect is a social psychology concept describing how attempts to persuade others often result in them adopting the opposite stance—and Lawrence Barry is about to learn all about it. On the brink of expulsion, he decides to stop smoking weed and imbibing alcohol and start trying to be a better person (mostly to avoid exile at a military academy). This starts with helping out his clueless buddy, Spencer, acclimate to high-school life—how to be popular, how to look cool, and most of all, how to “be normal.” Unfortunately, the efforts only lead Lawrence to become the prime suspect in the vandalism of the school’s homecoming floats. It’s up to the two to figure out who is framing him and why. Jack’s impeccable comedic timing and ear for dialogue make this an irresistible, absurdist romp with a lovable Ferris Bueller–type raconteur at its center. Even so, Jack manages to explore serious topics like drug abuse, sex, racism, sexism, and ableism through an honest and multidimensional lens that teen readers will appreciate.— Suarez, Reinhardt. "The Boomerang Effect-book review." Booklist Online. 13 October 2016. This is a newer YA voice who may appeal to teen guys and girls, but esp those readers who appreciate the sly satire of Gordon Jack, delivered in hilarious episodes of high school life that stretch the bounds of believabilty, but fun nonetheless because Lawrence is the perennial optimist that he can somehow clear his name, be the noble mentor to the newly arrived Norwegian Spencer, and resolve both his friend Eddie's and his romance issues. An Evergreen Book Award nominee.