Extraordinary Means

March 2, 2015
It’s hard to imagine a story about terminally ill teens that isn’t depressing, but Schneider (The Beginning of Everything) has created just that. Set in the not-too-distant future after a deadly strain of tuberculosis has swept across the U.S., the novel is set in Latham House, a residential facility for young people infected with the disease. There, 17-year-old Lane reunites with an old acquaintance, Sadie. Despite their illnesses, the two start falling in love as they test their limits inside the facility and reinvent themselves. Lane and Sadie’s alternating viewpoints sensitively trace how their experiences affect their perspectives of both life and death: Lane, once a serious and disciplined student, learns to live for the moment, and Sadie, an unpopular “disaster in middle school,” is becoming a leader, surrounded by friends. When the residents learn that a cure may become available, they are left to ponder what they will gain and lose by getting well and re-entering society. Balancing the hope of new beginnings against the uncertain fates of victims, it’s a novel that should prompt thoughtful discussions. Ages 13–up. Agent: Merrilee Heifetz, Writers House.

March 1, 2015
When Lane's drug-resistant tuberculosis lands him in a sanatorium, he finds that one of the other residents is a girl he met at summer camp years ago. College-bound Lane is in denial about his illness, assuming that he can keep up with his AP work and go home soon. Sadie's condition is neither improving nor getting worse; she's been at Latham House long enough to have formed a group of friends who go on nighttime excursions to buy contraband in the nearby town. In alternating chapters, Lane and Sadie narrate their gradual interest in and eventual love for each other as they await an upcoming drug trial that could mean an end to their quarantine. The teens' voices are authentic, and there's enough humor to keep this from becoming maudlin, even though the miracle drug doesn't quite make it in time. A lengthy author's note spells out Schneider's intention to write about a nonexistent form of TB to "fix" what she sees as teen literature's lack of medical narratives "that humanize the illness experience." Unfortunately, this approach doesn't necessarily make for good storytelling, as the message takes over, leaving readers to muse on Sadie's philosophy that "living and dying are actually different words for the same thing, if you think about it." Readers will do better to seek out The Fault in Our Stars. (Fiction. 14 & up)

March 1, 2015

Gr 8 Up-After being diagnosed with a drug-resistant form of tuberculosis, the cute but nerdy Lane is sent to Latham House, an isolated boarding school where there is plenty of fresh air, no homework or tests, and long rest periods between classes. Lane, who has been more focused on getting into his dream college than making meaningful friendships and high school memories, connects once again with the eccentric Sadie, a former summer camp intrigue who has already been quarantined at the school for over a year. With only a narrow chance at recovery, as romance unfurls, neither teen has fully come to terms with what it means to be terminally ill. Sadie, who has had a chance to reinvent herself with her close friends of TB misfits, isn't sure what life outside of Latham would mean for her, whereas Lane, who always felt fun could wait until college, is forced to slow down and now sees how little he has lived. Even with the grim setting, funny dialogue, especially among Sadie's close knit group of friends, carries this story through its predictable paths. The novel is told in alternating voices, and Sadie's characterization often feels a little weak in comparison to Lane's. Still, their struggles will have teens wanting to read to the finish. VERDICT Schneider's subtlety, combined with themes about learning to live life fully, makes this an easy recommendation for those seeking titles similar in premise to John Green's The Fault in Our Stars (Dutton, 2012).-Danielle Jones, Multnomah County Library, OR

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