The Schwa Was Here by Neal Shusterman

The Schwa Was Here

Neal Shusterman

Penguin Young Readers Group · Print & ebook · March 2, 2006

A Young Adult pick for readers exploring The Schwa Was Here.

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Who it’s for
A rueful first-person confession makes friendship, guilt, and being overlooked the story’s sharpest draws.
Themes
Friendship and causing a friend grief, Being unnoticed
Genres
Friendship for Teens, Loners & Outsiders for Teens, Dark Comedy YA

About this book

They say his clothes blend into the background, no matter where he stands. They say a lot of things about the Schwa, but one thing’s for sure: no one ever noticed him. Except me. My name is Antsy Bonano, and I was the one who realized the Schwa was “functionally invisible” and used him to make some big bucks. But I was also the one who caused him more grief than a friend should.

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So if you all just shut up and listen, I’ll tell you everything there is to know about the Schwa, from how he got his name, to what really happened with his mom. I’ll spill everything. Unless, of course, “the Schwa Effect” wipes him out of my brain before I’m done….

The Trouble of Noticing

A rueful first-person confession makes friendship, guilt, and being overlooked the story’s sharpest draws.

Come here for

  • A narrator who admits he hurt the friend he claims to understand
  • The uneasy tension between being unseen and being remembered

Expect

  • A conversational account addressed straight to its listeners
  • Questions of friendship and responsibility, with a wry edge

Where it sits

Friendship for Teens63%
Loners & Outsiders for Teens48%
Dark Comedy YA39%

Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.

Publisher categories

  • Loners & Outsiders for Teens
  • Disabilities & Special Needs for Teens
  • Friendship for Teens
Authors
Neal Shusterman
Publisher
Penguin Young Readers Group
Published
March 2, 2006
Format
Print & ebook
Theme
Friendship and causing a friend grief · Being unnoticed
Reading lane
Loners & Outsiders for Teens