Publishers Weekly
03/08/2021
Thirteen-year-old Finn McAllister is riding his bike a few days before middle school’s end when a speeding black van forces him over a cliff to his death. But the sharp rocks at the bottom aren’t the end for Finn, who remains on Earth as a ghost, offering wry commentary while viewing his family and friends. Instead of moving on to the afterlife, he stays to take care of unfinished business, such as determining who killed him. When he befriends fellow ghost Isabella Rojas, a quiet girl who vanished four months earlier, the two decide to handle their unfinished business together. As Finn dwells upon the “risk-averse, danger-avoiding life” his cautious insurance actuary father encouraged him to lead, he realizes that he regrets missing hijinks with his friends. With this chatty, introspective ghost story, Patterson and Grabenstein (Scaredy Cat) explore concepts such as regret, being ruled by fear, and embracing opportunity. However somber the premise, the creators inject a lively underlying current and a sense of optimism as the new friends make the most of their spectral status and face the unknown future. Final art not seen by PW. Ages 8–12. (May)
From the Publisher
Praise for Best Nerds Forever:
“Written with a balanced mix of comedy and insight . . . and the illustrations lend an added boost of humor. Readers will be rewarded through the very last page!”—Booklist
“Patterson and Grabenstein inject a lively underlying current and a sense of optimism as the new friends make the most of their spectral status and face the unknown future.”—Publishers Weekly
Kirkus Reviews
2021-07-08
Two young ghosts with unfinished business in this world join forces.
Eighth grade cyclist Finn McAllister decides to undertake a search for the supposedly crazed driver who forced him off the road and over a cliff to his death, but he spends far more of his time attending his own funeral, hovering near his grieving family and his four besties to overhear conversations, and floating through school—skipping the girls’ restroom because he still has some standards—and positively hammering on the realization that wasting any of life’s opportunities can only lead to regret. He discovers that he can still taste ice cream, smell farts, skip stones in the local lake, and use a TV remote. He can also share thoughts with both the living and with Isabella Rojas, the ghost of a classmate who vanished several months previously but is still hanging around, although she is not sure why. Eventually, in a massively contrived climax that leaves both souls ready to move on, Finn comes up with a scheme to produce proof of Isabella’s death to bring closure to her mother and also absolves his hit-and-run driver of fault (for a reason readers will see coming). In this outing, the usually dynamic duo throws together an aimless ramble around a set of flimsy mysteries that fail to coalesce. Finn reads as White; Isabella is cued as Latinx. Final illustrations not seen.
Likely to sell in spades but a slipshod, slapdash outing from co-authors who usually have higher standards. (Paranormal fantasy. 10-13)
