The Last Best Story

by Maggie Lehrman

Overview

A witty, fresh romantic comedy, set on one fateful prom night, about two high-schools seniors who can’t quite admit they are in love. Think E. Lockhart meets Katie Cotugno.

It’s the end of senior year, and Rose Regnero is over it.

She’s over chasing stories for a school newspaper no one reads. Over missing out on “normal” high school life. And most of all, over Grant Leitch: editor-in-chief, former close friend, never-quite-boyfriend. Now all she wants is a typical prom, complete with handsome date, fancy corsage, and dancing to cheesy pop songs.

It’s the end of senior year, and Grant Leitch is in denial.

He’s in denial about handing over the reins of the paper to an unworthy underclassman. In denial that Rose suddenly, inexplicably quit the paper and now won’t talk to him. But mostly he’s in denial that she is at prom with another guy, and it’s no one’s fault but his own. Grant’s only hope of luring Rose back to him (and the paper) is a juicy story she won’t be able to resist.

In the end it takes a toga-wearing prom crasher, an emergency lockdown, a secret stalker, and a wild after-party to bring Grant and Rose together for one last story...and one final chance to admit that they’re made for each other.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062320773
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	08/07/2018
Pages:	352
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.30(h) x 1.30(d)
Age Range:	14 - 17 Years

About the Author

Maggie Lehrman is a writer and editor living in Brooklyn, New York. She grew up outside of Chicago and went on to get a degree in English at Harvard, where she once received a grant to purchase young adult books the library didn't have. During her decade of working as an editor of books for children, she also earned an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts. She is the author of The Cost of All Things and The Last Best Story.

Editorial Reviews

Honest, messy, and infinitely charming. This is my favorite kind of love story.” — Becky Albertalli, award-winning author of Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda

“The Last Best Story is the first best high school newspaper screwball romantic comedy. Rosie and Grant are funny and warm and too brilliant for their own good, and I would spend another 1000 pages hanging out with them if I could.” — Jesse Andrews, New York Times bestselling author of Me, Earl, and the Dying Girl

“Smart and bighearted and deliriously fun. The Last Best Story crackles.” — Katie Cotugno, New York Times bestselling author of 99 Days

“Readers [are] likely to find enjoyment from the spirited characters and entertaining story line.” — ALA Booklist

From the Publisher

Readers [are] likely to find enjoyment from the spirited characters and entertaining story line.

ALA Booklist

“The Last Best Story is the first best high school newspaper screwball romantic comedy. Rosie and Grant are funny and warm and too brilliant for their own good, and I would spend another 1000 pages hanging out with them if I could.

Jesse Andrews

Honest, messy, and infinitely charming. This is my favorite kind of love story.

Becky Albertalli

Smart and bighearted and deliriously fun. The Last Best Story crackles.

Katie Cotugno

06/01/2018
Gr 9 Up—Rose Regnero, star reporter, has spent almost four intense years working in the newspaper room alongside editor-in-chief, Grant. But just before the end of her last semester, she abruptly quits, announcing that she wants a different, normal life. Grant, who is unconsciously besotted with her, feels blindsided and can't understand what happened. Rose attends prom only to find herself face-to-face with Grant when an alarm sounds and all the students are put on lockdown. There's reportedly an active shooter in the building and everyone is terrified, but all Grant can focus on is that this could be the story of his career—and he's betting it will bring Rose back into his life. Meanwhile, Rose knows more about the emergency than she lets on but she's unsure she wants to involve herself with Grant. Uneven writing mars this story of two teens who are perfect for each other but can't seem to get it together, set in the frightening scenario of recent shootings. Descriptive sequences are clear and exceptionally visual, but characterization sometimes lack authenticity. Sequential plotting often suffers during the shooting scenes. Still, in her sophomore effort, Lehrman has long moments of brilliance and is a writer to watch. VERDICT An uneven but promising effort for those who enjoy stories of unrequited love, journalism, or topical novels on current news themes.—Susan Riley, Mamaroneck Public Library, NY

School Library Journal

2018-05-15
Love, journalism, and teenage angst collide in this sweet story of missed opportunities and second chances.Rose and Grant are the perfect team, in sync about their journalistic aspirations and their future at Northwestern. She writes for the Hawks High School newspaper that he edits, and as they chase down leads and work long hours together, romantic tension simmers just beneath the surface. At the end of senior year, however, Rose is ready to move on from the newspaper dream she's not sure was ever 100 percent hers and from the boy who is perpetually too afraid to make a move. When the school goes into lockdown during prom, Grant realizes that this story may be his last chance to work with Rose and his only hope of winning her back. The narrative shift between the present day and the pair's earlier years in high school allows the tension between Rose and Grant to build organically. Lehrman (The Cost of All Things, 2015) writes teens well, and Rose's consternation over her life choices and the revelation that the future she envisioned might not suit her feel all too real, as does Grant's indecisiveness about whether to risk friendship for something more. Grant is assumed white, Rose is Italian and Cuban, and her best friend is Chinese-American (her portrayal unfortunately falls into lazy stereotypes).An earnest high school romp as intrepid as its sleuthing protagonists. (Fiction 14-18)

Kirkus Reviews