I Woke Up Dead at the Mall

by Judy Sheehan Narrated by Cassandra Morris

Overview

Judy Sheehan's debut young-adult novel is a terrifically fun read that also tackles some of life's-and the afterlife's-big questions.

Last night Sarah was a bridesmaid, dressed in a hideous mango chiffon. Today she wakes up dead at the Mall of America. This is where the universe sends teenagers who were murdered. In fact, most malls are haunted. The living don't notice it, what with all the bright lights, sales, and free samples. The dead just pass through them while finishing up the business of their former lives. As Sarah and her fellow dead teenagers work together to move on, she hits just a few complications: Sarah discovers an uncanny ability to haunt the living, and while she has no idea who killed her, she knows the one person she loves back on earth is in grave (yes, grave) danger. Meanwhile, she's falling madly and badly for Nick, who died heroically saving his girlfriend. Sarah can't let these distractions put her at risk of being doomed to relive her final moments again and again. But how can she stop her killer from killing again?

Editorial Reviews

Children’s Literature

Readers looking for a warm-and-fuzzy story about unexpected love and second chances will enjoy the humor and romance of this tale.”

Booklist (starred review)

Any reader who loves snarky, sarcastic teens, ghost stories, romance, and loves/hates to shop will enjoy sixteen-year-old Manhattanite Sarah’s shock at dying and waking up at Minnesota’s Mall of America…This sparkling debut pulls out all the stops: sweet, sad, hopeful, funny, and romantic in turn, it’s a story bound to make readers laugh even as they cry.”

From the Publisher

★ “This sparkling debut pulls out all the stops: sweet, sad, hopeful, funny, and romantic in turn, it’s a story bound to make readers laugh even as they cry.” —Booklist starred review

"A feel-good novel about being dead? Only in this quirky, even romantic story."—Kirkus

"Humorous and offbeat."—School Library Journal

School Library Journal

02/01/2016
Gr 9 Up—Sixteen-year-old New Yorker Sarah Evans is shocked when she wakes up dead. At the Mall of America. In Minnesota. Wearing the mango chiffon bridesmaid gown she had on when she died. Along with fellow teen murder victims Harry (cancer, although that isn't technically what killed him), Lacey (pushed off a roof), Alice (she doesn't want to talk about it), and the oh-so-dreamy Nick (gunshot to the chest), Sarah is supposed to use her time at the mall to prepare to move on. The only problem is that Sarah can't believe anyone would want to murder her when she spent her entire (short) life determined to be ordinary. Sarah also knows without a doubt that her father is in danger and she's the only one who can save him—even if interfering with the living is against the rules, according to her annoyingly chipper "death coach," Bertha. In this humorous and offbeat ghost story, Sarah uses her uncanny haunting abilities, along with some help from her new friends, to make sense of her afterlife and save the day. Sarah's snark-filled first-person narration meshes well with the madcap quality of this story. This novel sidesteps religion by presenting the Boy (aka "Boss of You") as the ultimate authority figure in the afterlife while also keeping things like angels separate from any faith-based interpretations. Unfortunately these seemingly arbitrary alternatives also provide little in the way of world-building for the fantasy elements. Pop culture references, including a years too late cameo by Oprah Winfrey, lend a dated and out-of-touch quality to this otherwise strong plot. One-note characters with vague motivations further diminish the overall impact of this novel. VERDICT Sheehan's quirky vision of the afterlife ultimately leads to a meandering plot with a mixed bag of plot points and an ending that ties things up with a too neat bow.—Emma Carbone, Brooklyn Public Library

Kirkus Reviews

2015-12-22
A feel-good novel about being dead? Only in this quirky, even romantic story. Sarah Evans would never be caught dead in mango, until, well, she wakes up dead in a mango chiffon dress at Minnesota's Mall of America. The 16-year-old New Yorker, the victim of food poisoning intended for her wealthy father, finds herself among other teens, all murdered, from New York City. They become stuck at the mall while they take care of unfinished business in the living world and reconcile their feelings for their new state of being. Unlike her fellow humans (alive or dead), Sarah has a gift, called the Knowing, which allows her to foresee unfortunate events in the future. While she wasn't able to stop her own mother's death, she may be able to thwart her new, greedy stepmother's attempt to kill her father. But she'll need the help of her fellow mall-mates. Although time and socio-economics would have prevented many of them from knowing one another, they become fast friends. Sarah's conversational, quick-paced, first-person narrative, full of "deadly" puns and idioms, recounts how she and her new BFFs (even in death?) work together. And when Sarah finds love in the process, she realizes she's only learned how to live by being dead. Sure, the plot is inconceivable, but isn't life? And death? (Fantasy. 14-18)

Product Details

BN ID:	2940169522419
Publisher:	Blackstone Audio, Inc.
Publication date:	03/22/2016
Edition description:	Unabridged
Age Range:	10 - 13 Years

Read an Excerpt

Chapter One
(Continues…)

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Excerpted from "I Woke Up Dead at the Mall"
by .
Copyright © 2017 Judy Sheehan.
Excerpted by permission of Random House Children's Books.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

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