The Rest of Us Just Live Here

August 3, 2015
Having written both exquisite fantasies and heartbreaking contemporary stories, Ness (More Than This) forays into satire, and mostly succeeds, poking fun at the Chosen One trope—imagine a novel about Bella and Edward’s classmates wrestling with exams, college admission, and unrequited love, with all those vampire/werewolf shenanigans as backdrop. Siblings Mikey and Melinda know something sinister is happening when the “indie kids” start dying in mysterious ways. Zombie deer and eerie blue pillars of light suggest apocalypse (again) in their remote town in Washington State, but they are busy trying to survive familial dysfunction (their father is an alcoholic, their mother a power-hungry politician) that has worsened Mikey’s anxiety and given Mel an eating disorder. Their diverse circle of friends includes Henna (Mikey’s crush) and Jared who is (secretly) part god. Each chapter opens with an ominous (and hilarious) synopsis about the imminent showdown between the Immortals and the hipster clique, and while the payoff after all the supernatural and emotional buildup is minimal, this is Mikey’s story to tell and he’s not trying to save the world, just himself. Ages 14–up.

Starred review from September 1, 2015

Gr 9 Up-In this highly satiric exploration of the "chosen one" genre, an incredibly normal group of friends are approaching the end of high school and their parting of ways. Mikey is just trying to get through the year and hopefully ask his longtime crush to the prom. Similarly, each person in Mikey's close-knit circle of friends is battling a myriad of highly relatable issues: jealousy, various insecurities, and dysfunctional family relationships. The beginning of each chapter also contains an update in the concurrent story line centering on the "indie kids." These are Mikey and his pals' extraordinary peers, those from exceptional families who are exclusively chosen whenever there is a supernatural occurrence. They've fought off zombies and fallen in love with vampires, and now they're being targeted by the Immortals, a mysterious group looking for a permanent Vessel. In the end, Mikey and his friends come to grips with the ways in which they are both ordinary and extraordinary. This is a highly ambitious novel with an original concept, and the five main characters are all dealing with issues that will resonate with teens. Though the two plotlines don't always come together and readers used to more linear narratives might feel bombarded by information, the stream-of-consciousness narrative will please fans of Libba Bray's Going Bovine (Delacorte, 2009). VERDICT Fans of madcap humor and satire and those seeking more thought-provoking alternatives to the usual fare will appreciate this unique and clever take on a familiar trope.-Sunnie Lovelace, Wallingford Public Library, CT

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from August 1, 2015
It's not easy being normal when the Chosen One goes to your high school. High school senior Mikey Mitchell knows that he's not one of the "indie kids" in his small Washington town. While they "end up being the Chosen One when the vampires come calling or when the Alien Queen needs the Source of All Light or something," Mikey simply wants to graduate, enjoy his friendships, and maybe, just maybe, kiss his longtime crush. All that's easier said than done, however, thanks to his struggles with anxiety, his dreadful parents, and the latest group of indie kids discovering their "capital-D Destinies." By beginning each chapter with an arch summary of the indie kids' adventures before returning to Mikey's wry first-person narration, Ness offers a hilarious-and perceptive-commentary on the chosen-one stories that are currently so popular in teen fiction. The diverse cast of characters is multidimensional and memorable, and the depiction of teen sexuality is refreshingly matter-of-fact. Magical pillars of light and zombie deer may occasionally drive the action here, but ultimately this novel celebrates the everyday heroism of teens doing the hard work of growing up. Fresh, funny, and full of heart: not to be missed. (Fantasy. 13 & up)

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September 1, 2015
Ness's latest offering is a fantasy noveland simultaneously a fantasy-novel send-upwhose true focus is on its cast of innocent bystanders. Mikey's town is just like your town, except that every once in a while impossible things (the undead, vampires, soul-eating ghosts) invade it and are driven out by the heroic indie kids with unusual names and capital-D Destinies. This time, the invaders are Immortals with a mission to select someone as a permanent Vessel for their Empress in preparation for taking over the world. Brief chapter openings encapsulate these details, but the rest of each chapter tells what's happening to ordinary Mikey. He and his siblings and friends sometimes cross paths with the hero indie-kids but rarely take part in their adventures, which the main characters brush off as just another one of their crazy sagas. The novel's tone, with its ripped-from-current-YA-fantasy indie-kid names (two Finns; a heroine named Satchel; lots of Dylans), encourages readers to view the Immortal invasion the same way. The narrative's real weight is attached to the mostly realistic events surrounding Mikey: the loops that his OCD traps him in; his sister Mel's severe eating disorder; the outside attention on the family because of his politician mom; a love quadrangle involving longtime friends and fluid sexualities. In this often-hilarious (and just as often poignant) parody of fantasy stories from Harry's to Buffy's, not everyone is a Chosen One, but everyone's got something; everybody matters. shoshana flax

(Copyright 2015 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

Starred review from July 1, 2015
Grades 9-12 *Starred Review* Mikey and his pals are about to graduate high school, right as the indie kids that group with the cool-geek haircuts and the thrift shop clothes start disappearing. It's not the first time this has happened: over his 18 years, Mikey's watched as the indie kids (they're always the Chosen Ones) battled the undead, defeated vampire suitors, and engaged in other world-saving activities. It's run-of-the-mill stuff at his high school, which has been blown up more than once. But right now, Mikey, perfectly normal, not-superpowered Mikey, has more pressing, if prosaic, things to worry about in the little time he has left before collegenamely, getting cozy with beautiful Henna, connecting with his sister, dealing with his paralyzing anxiety, and hanging with his best friend, who happens to be a God of Cats. Best-selling Ness has crafted a polished, lifelike world where the mundane moments are just as captivating as the extraordinary. Mikey and his friends are flawed, funny, and deeply human, yet the challenges they facemental illness, family trouble, jealousies, etc.are just as meaningful as the apocalypse-prevention the indie kids get up to. Ness' deadpan sci-fi novel pokes fun at far-fetched futuristic fantasies while emphasizing the important victories of merely living. This memorable, moving, and often hilarious read is sure to be a hit. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: You don't have to have superpowers to recognize Ness' cachet in the YA scene.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)