Publisher: Aladdin (August 27, 2024)
Length: 288 pages
ISBN13: 9781665943277
Grades: 5 and up
Not Nothing
Read an Excerpt | Read the Author’s Note
Alex is twelve, and he did something very, very bad. A judge sentences him to spend his summer volunteering at a retirement home where he’s bossed around by an annoying and self-important do-gooder named Maya-Jade. He hasn’t seen his mom in a year, his aunt and uncle don’t want him, and Shady Glen’s geriatric residents seem like zombies to him.
Josey is 107 and ready for his life to be over. He has evaded death many times, having survived ghettos, dragnets, and a concentration camp—all thanks to the heroism of a woman named Olka and his own ability to sew. But now he spends his days in room 206 at Shady Glen, refusing to speak and waiting (and waiting and waiting) to die. Until Alex knocks on Josey’s door . . . and Josey begins to tell Alex his story.
As Alex comes back again and again to hear more, an unlikely bond grows between them. Soon a new possibility opens up for Alex: Can he rise to the occasion of his life, even if it means confronting the worst thing that he’s ever done? New York Times bestselling author Gayle Forman has crafted a multigenerational story of hope, compassion, and forgiveness that is as timely as it is timeless.
Praise for Not Nothing
★ “Powerful, heartbreaking, and hopeful.”
—Kirkus Reviews
★ “A stunning intergenerational story.”
—School Library Journal
★ “This tale of intergenerational friendship forged through a shared understanding of loss is told with spellbinding grace and wrought with exquisite structuring that quietly highlights the heartrending parallels between Josey’s WWII remembrances and Alex’s current struggles.”
—Publishers Weekly
★ “Twelve-year-old Alex, now living with his aunt and uncle following his mother's disappearance, is court ordered to volunteer at Shady Glen, a care home, where he meets 107-year-old Joseph Kravitz, a resident who hasn't spoken in five years. Sensing a bond, Joseph begins sharing his memories with Alex, detailing his life as a Polish Jew, his incarceration at Plaszow concentration camp, and his subsequent rescue. In interspersed chapters, Joseph reveals both his own Holocaust experiences and Alex's troubled backstory. Forman (If I Stay, 2009) is a master of the slow, heart-wrenching reveal, and this story does not disappoint. Both characters feel deeply responsible for past mistakes and want to find a way to rise above them by making a good difference for others. Well-developed secondary characters add richness to the story and provide some lighter moments: Alex's social worker, Frank Johnson, puts his reputation on the line to get this second chance for Alex; Maya-Jade, a Chinese adoptee, volunteers at the home and becomes a real friend; and several other residents have comical foibles that often conceal their own past accomplishments. While the subject matter (hate crimes, antisemitism, mental illness, death) makes for some difficult reading, those who stick with this story will be richly rewarded.”
—Booklist
"Forman . . . captures the quietly powerful moments of feeling seen and known."
—Horn Book Magazine
“[Not Nothing] is about listening, learning to apologize, helping those who seem to be unredeemable or in impossible situations, and standing up for those who may not be able to speak for themselves. It is recommended for all library collections.”
—The Association of Jewish Libraries
“A heartbreaker… One of my top reads of 2024.”
—School Library Journal
“Not Nothing is a beautifully-written, poignant, life-affirming gem about ordinary people doing extraordinary things during unimaginable times. Ultimately, it’s a story about stories, those spoken memories handed down from generation to generation that inspire us all to ‘rise to the occasion of our lives’. Bravo, Gayle Forman!”
—R. J. Palacio, author of Wonder, White Bird, and Pony
“It’s not nothing when a story grabs you from the first line and keeps you turning pages until the last. It’s not nothing when a story (two actually) makes you laugh, cry, worry, wonder, and cry again. It’s not nothing when a book captures your heart, expands your mind, and stays with you long after you’ve reluctantly read the last word.”
—Deborah Heiligman, award-winning author of Torpedoed: The True Story of the World War II Sinking of “the Children’s Ship”
“This stunning, masterfully told story of compassion, forgiveness, and joy is the book we all need at the time we all need it. Profound, heart-healing, and life-changing.”
—Katherine Applegate, Newbery award–winning author of The One and Only Ivan
“Not Nothing is a masterpiece. It has so many feelings and moral conundrums and ultra-urgent themes—it should be a community-wide read all over the country. Timely, funny, perfect.”
—Adam Gidwitz, bestselling author of Newbery Honor book The Inquisitor’s Tale and Max in the House of Spies
“Tenderly layered and beautifully constructed. Forman weaves an intensely moving portrait of stories separated by generations but inextricably connected by the experience of having known love and lost it.”
—Ruta Sepetys, author of Carnegie Medal–winning Salt to the Sea and international bestseller Between Shades of Gray
“Beautiful, heart-wrenching, and impossible to put down, Not Nothing is a story about the power of love, hope, and forgiveness.”
—Sarah Mlynowski, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Whatever After and the Best Wishes Series