Solitaire
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4.3 • 15 Ratings
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- $13.99
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
A CHILDREN’S TOP 10 BESTSELLER (TCM)
The debut novel from Alice Oseman, author of the 2021 YA Book Prize winning Loveless. Solitaire features the characters that inspired the beloved series Heartstopper – now a major Netflix series.
“The Catcher in the Rye for the digital age” The Times
My name is Tori Spring. I like to sleep and I like to blog. Last year – before all that stuff with Charlie and before I had to face the harsh realities of A-Levels and university applications and the fact that one day I really will have to start talking to people – I had friends. Things were very different, I guess, but that’s all over now.
Now there’s Solitaire. And Michael Holden.
I don’t know what Solitaire are trying to do, and I don’t care about Michael Holden.
I really don’t.
This incredible debut novel by outstanding young author Alice Oseman is perfect for fans of John Green, Rainbow Rowell and all unflinchingly honest writers.
Reviews
“The Catcher in the Rye for the digital age” The Times
“The most honest and authentic account of modern teenage life that you’ll read this year… outstanding contemporary fiction with appeal to fans of John Green.” The Bookseller
‘A very authentic, teenage voice’ – Sunday Times
‘Solitaire is an extraordinary novel … [Oseman] has captured her characters’ rage, humour and insecurity with aplomb.’ The Financial Times
‘Oseman proves herself a clever, witty writer’ Publishers Weekly
“Full of wit, cynicism, sarcasm and humour. This book is relatable yet original at the same time.” Goodreads review
About the author
Alice Oseman was born in 1994 in Kent, England. She completed a degree in English at Durham University in 2016 and is currently a full-time writer and illustrator. Alice can usually be found staring aimlessly at computer screens, questioning the meaninglessness of existence, or doing anything and everything to avoid getting an office job. Alice's first book, SOLITAIRE, was published when she was nineteen.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Sixteen-year-old Tori Spring likes her brothers, her best friend, and that's about it. According to Tori, her fellow teenagers are mostly "soulless, conformist idiots," and adults aren't much better. But when the new term starts, Tori meets Michael Holden, an oddball she finds oddly interesting, and Lucas Ryan, a long-lost childhood best friend (in Year 12, boys can transfer in to Tori's British all-girls school). She also hears about a website called Solitaire, which traffics in small-scale pranks that escalate into danger. Tori is clearly depressed (her younger brother has an eating disorder and has survived a suicide attempt that Tori feels guilty about), but debut author Oseman wants her crankiness, disdain, and confusion to be charming, which isn't always the case. While the book's climax, when Solitaire's leaders are unmasked and relationships are cemented or mended, is chaotic and predictable, Oseman proves herself a clever, witty writer, and she effectively shows how angry or sad "nice" teens can be, as well as how the internet has infiltrated pretty much every aspect of life. Her sophomore effort will be worth watching for. Ages 13 up.
