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Slingshot: A Novel

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Availability: 20 left in stock
Fulfilled by Audible,
Arrives Jan 1 – Jan 5
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Description

"Narrator Jesse Vilinsky masterfully connects listeners to the awkward nervous energy of teens.... Vilinsky shines with breathless trepidation as Gracie grows from heartbreak, jealousy, and self-realization. At times, it's hard to listen to the raw emotions Vilinsky voices - which also make this audiobook hard to put down." (AudioFile Magazine, Earphones Award winner)Mercedes Helnwein's Slingshot is an exciting debut contemporary young-adult novel perfect for fans of Rainbow Rowell and Mary H. K. Choi."I didn’t think it was going to be anything like this when I finally fell in love. I thought it was going to be pretty simple. Like, I’d love someone and they’d love me. I thought that’s the way it worked.”Grace Welles is stuck at a third-tier boarding school in the swamps of Florida, where her method of survival is a strict, self-imposed loneliness. And it works. Her crap attitude keeps people away because without friends, there are fewer to lose.But when she accidentally saves the new kid, Wade Scholfield, from being beaten up, everything about her precariously balanced loner world collapses and, in order to find her footing again, she has no choice but to discover a completely new way to exist.Because with Wade around, school rules are optional, weird is okay, and conversations about wormholes can lead to make-out sessions that disrupt any logical stream of thought. Nothing’s perfect, but that’s not the point. When they're together everything seems uncomplicated in a way that Grace knows is not possible.Except it is.So why does Grace crush Wade’s heart into a million pieces?Acidly funny and thoroughly enjoyable, this debut is a story about two people finding each other and then screwing it all up. See also: soul mate, stupidity, sex, friendship, bad poetry, very bad decisions, and all the indignities of being in love for the first time.A Macmillan Audio production from Wednesday Books"Helnwein debuts in striking fashion.... The writing, especially the dialogue, is magnetic, honest, and brimming with caustic wit...[an] enrapturing take on the intense highs and lows of teenage love." (Booklist, starred review)"Wildly real and bursting with all the romance and pain of coming into oneself." (Kirkus, starred review) Read more

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Top Amazon Reviews

    • Refreshingly real
Format: Kindle
I don’t normally like YA books or a lot of romance books for that matter, because they’re so predictable. This was not that at all. This was a roller coaster of emotions that included liking characters and then hating them just as much in the next chapter (and then yo-yo’ing again), which was actually a very accurate reflection of emotions I remember feeling at the age of 15-16. So instead of the author telling me a story of like “remember how this was?” it was more like putting me through the emotions again, which admittedly was annoying and frustrating at times, but that’s literally EXACTLY how it was at 15-16! Plus, the author found better ways of describing the emotions than I could have back then, which was sort of therapeutic in a way. Very raw, very real, great “hindsight” book. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on May 31, 2021 by Amazon Customer
    • 3.5 Stars ~ NOT a fluffy or cute love story
Format: Audiobook
**3.5 Stars** I Liked: *Grace is a MESS. She’s 15, at a boarding school, unlikable, mean, a jerk, lacking social skills, says whatever she wants to say usual not caring about the consequences and she doesn’t believe in love. In a way she’s courageous, for not giving a crap but in lots of ways she’s afraid (of love) but wouldn’t admit it out loud until Wade and even Beth comes into her life. Also, she and her mom are her dad’s secret family so it’s no wonder she doesn’t believe in love. The blurb says “acidly funny” and all that acid comes from Grace haha! *Watching Grace navigate all her emotions was riveting and I could not put the book down. She’s all over the place. This girl is in love with her teacher then hates him when she finds out she was basically delusional about it. She pretty much scars a guy she hates, then sleeps with him and then unknowingly breaks his heart. If she went to my high school, this girl would have been getting into a lot of fights – she’s that girl. Despite her psychotic tendencies – I related to her thoughts about relationships, falling in love and sex because the relationships I saw growing up were totally dysfunctional too. *As for the romance with Wade ~ they start off as unlikely friends. Then best of friends into the possibility of something more and then into love. So it wasn’t instant which was nice, because Grace has a lot of issues but it was a sweet spot in the book. Wade is a good guy but we don’t know much about him until almost the ending. His life is complicated too. *Bittersweet ending – in true fashion, Grace falls for Wade, has this amazing time with him and it all comes crashing down. One thing is for sure with Grace, who basically hates everyone…she doesn’t hate Wade. And because Wade is so good, she learns to open up a bit…even make some friends and let some in. It’s not a total happy ending but realistic? I think so. Random Notes: *Triggers: student/teacher crush (one-sided), abuse, bullying *Grace crushes on her Bio teacher – hard. She thinks he reciprocates her feelings but ugh…he surely does not. And she basically does crazy stuff to him because she’s angry at him (breaks his pencils, writes him notes, tells him off) ~ this is how we are introduced to Grace and honestly from then on, I knew she needed therapy! This might turn people off to this book right away but seriously, it’s all one-sided. *Kind of bummed that Grace let all her grades go because of that whole teacher crush heartbreak – obviously this girl is SMART just lacking so much social skills and is almost hungrily studying others around her, hating them, judging them, needing praise (even it’s from some random guy like Derek who she hates) – dooming herself to loneliness because in the essence of it all she thinks her father never wanted her. Doesn’t love her. *I felt called out when Grace says she was into older music like 80’s/90’s and starts jamming to Smashing Pumpkins and Rage Against the Machine. 🤣 Talk about nostalgia – that was the music of MY high school years! Yes I’m old, but damn it the music was good! *This book totally could be a tv series, it’s quirky and dark enough, and Grace is so problematic. Final Thoughts: Do not be fooled by this pink, happy book cover…this is not a fluffy, cutesy love story. Grace is a mean, cold, hurt, lost teenager trying to navigate all these feelings of love, sex, and friendship. She takes it out on everyone around her, and then Wade comes along and she tries to be better, for him. This story will not be for everyone, Grace has no filter ~ but she reminds me of someone I befriended in my younger years and things turned out okay for my friend. Moral of the story, we are all flawed, the teenage years are angsty and emotional, but we can still turn out okay. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on May 6, 2021 by ylmpastmidnight
    • Just Great
Format: Kindle
Wasn't sure what I was getting into but this is just a great book. Something worth your time and attention.
Reviewed in the United States on August 5, 2023 by Amazon Customer
    • Such a fun read
Format: Hardcover
Oh man this book was so entertaining. Had me laughing and crying. One of those books where you truly feel what the characters are going through. Just really Hones in on young love and angst. Highly recommend !
Reviewed in the United States on June 15, 2022 by Blake
    • Stories don't end. That story continues whether the author writes about it or not.
Format: Audiobook
Review Image by Jessica Ramoutar Jessica Ramoutar
Every once in a while, a book comes along, that is so absolutely cray-cray you don't know what to think. I firmly believe Slingshot falls into this category and while it may not be for everyone, the earnest and honest journey of Grace was endearing and genuine. Grace is the product of a broken home with a delusional mother and absentee father who essentially treats them like the "outside" family. Can we honestly blame Grace for being stoic and a loner? Grace has some serious anxiety and insecurity issues which she masks with her mean girl persona as a safeguard to avoid letting people into her life. Naturally, she develops daddy issues and is drawn to the only positive male role model she has her Biology teacher, who inevitably crushes her heart (unbeknownst to him) by getting engaged. In comes Wade, whom she rescues with her handy slingshot and they fast become... well they become something lol. I enjoyed that the author did not use Wade as some magical catalyst to solving all Grace's problems but instead allows her to be a silly teenager while navigating real life. Grace makes some pretty messed up choices, supported by some questionable logic, but at the end of the day, who isn't stupid as a teenager? Her philosophy on love is quite appropriate to one her age and the descriptions of her sexual exploitations were like watching a train wreck, hoping it would stop but secretly enjoying it. Take this little nugget here, "It was like he couldn't help it- eyes glazed over, possessed, seemingly robbed of his wits. Meanwhile, I was still on planet earth, with my feet firmly planted on the ground, fascinated by my own untapped powers." My only qualm with this book was the level of casual underage sexual activity and the fact that despite all the growth made by Grace as an individual, she throws her chance at a better life away by disregarding her school work to pine over a boy. If there is to be a part two, I sincerely hope Grace gets her priorities in check and screws her head on right for the sake of her future. I think Slingshot, at its core, is about opening yourself up to possibilities, be it in love, friendships, or family. At the end of it, I had to reassess my emotional constitution because I may not have agreed with a lot of her choices, but they were messy and sincere, and I liked that. In the immortal words of Grace, "Stories don't end. Even the last word of the last sentence of a book is not an ending. That story continues whether the author writes about it or not." Thank you to the author and NetGalley for providing me with an arc. Trigger warnings- child abuse, violence, underage drinking, and smoking. ... show more
Reviewed in the United States on May 5, 2021 by Jessica Ramoutar Jessica Ramoutar

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