Just Finished Reading The Great American Whatever by Tim Federle

The Great American Whatever is a 2016 realistic, non-dystopian (for a change) young adult novel written by Tim Federle.  Set in the present time in Pittsburgh, sixteen year old Quinn Roberts has quite a few issues in his life to deal with: the loss the previous December of his beloved sister Annabeth in a car wreck, his father having earlier abandoned them, his mother retiring to living on the couch, his own sexual orientation and when to "come out", and his deep-seated desire to become a successful screenwriter.  Quinn has shut off his cellphone and hasn't gone back to school since the accident...it takes his lifelong close friend Geoff to spur him on to reenter the world of the living, but it's going to take a while.  Written in the first person by Quinn, the story is very endearing and sweet, and the personalities of the characters are revealed through their dialogue and Quinn's introspective insights.  He is an avid movie buff and keeps lists of his favorites, as well as things like the "top ten greatest lines"...kind of reminds me of myself in this regard.  And yes, the title gets explained toward the book's end...

In commentary following The Great American Whatever, Tim Federle revealed that, like Quinn, he is gay and wanted to write a story from that perspective of a teenager having to deal with his identity as well as the social climate and reaction to LBGTQ+ issues...there seems to be much more support nowadays than in decades past, but the bullies are still there, sad to say.  I've heard he has written some other novels as well...this was a good story and I'll probably end up reading another of his sometime in the "great future whatever"...