What to Say Next - by Julie Buxbaum (Hardcover)

About the Book

When an unlikely friendship is sparked between relatively popular Kit Lowell and socially isolated David Drucker, Kit asks David for his help figuring out the how and why of her father's tragic car accident.

Book Synopsis

"What to Say Next reminds readers that hope can be found in unexpected places." -Bustle

From the New York Times bestselling author of Tell Me Three Things comes a story about two struggling teenagers who find an unexpected connection just when they need it most. Nicola Yoon, the bestselling author of Everything, Everything, calls it "charming, funny, and deeply affecting."

Sometimes a new perspective is all that is needed to make sense of the world.

KIT: I don't know why I decide not to sit with Annie and Violet at lunch. It feels like no one here gets what I'm going through. How could they? I don't even understand.

DAVID: In the 622 days I've attended Mapleview High, Kit Lowell is the first person to sit at my lunch table. I mean, I've never once sat with someone until now. "So your dad is dead," I say to Kit, because this is a fact I've recently learned about her.

When an unlikely friendship is sparked between relatively popular Kit Lowell and socially isolated David Drucker, everyone is surprised, most of all Kit and David. Kit appreciates David's blunt honesty--in fact, she finds it bizarrely refreshing. David welcomes Kit's attention and her inquisitive nature. When she asks for his help figuring out the how and why of her dad's tragic car accident, David is all in. But neither of them can predict what they'll find. Can their friendship survive the truth?

Named a Best Young Adult Novel of the Year by POPSUGAR

"Charming, funny, and deeply affecting all at the same time." -Nicola Yoon, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Everything, Everything and The Sun Is Also a Star

"Heartfelt, charming, deep, and real. I love it with all my heart." -Jennifer Niven, New York Times bestselling author of All the Bright Places

Review Quotes

"Buxbaum uses split first-person narration to give readers striking insight into both teens. . . . Readers will easily see David as a complex, brilliant individual. Discussion of Kit's family and heritage bring additional complexity and depth to his portrait of grief and recovery."--PW

". . . a story of friendship and finding one's tribe. Teens who enjoy sweet, character-driven relationship stories will find their tribe with Kit and David." -VOYA

"Charming, funny, and deeply affecting all at the same time." -Nicola Yoon, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Everything, Everything and The Sun Is Also a Star

"Heartfelt, charming, deep, and real. I love it with all my heart." -Jennifer Niven, New York Times bestselling author of All the Bright Places

"Told in the alternating voices of a girl whose world has been shattered and a boy who is the only person in her life who sees her clearly, WHAT TO SAY NEXT is about the power of connection and the beauty of compassion. With sensitivity, wisdom, and heart, Julie Buxbaum weaves a story in which loss and grieving are balanced by humor and insight. This novel is so compulsively readable that you'll be surprised how deeply your emotions are stirred."--Christina Baker Kline, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Orphan Train

"Julie Buxbaum has written my perfect love story--two brave, flawed characters ditching the idea of 'normal, ' falling in love, and finding the unanswerable answers to life in each other. I adored it."--Cath Crowley, author of Graffiti Moon and Words in Deep Blue

"Among many other YA characters who find love despite their differences, Kit and David stand out." --The Horn Book

About the Author

JULIE BUXBAUM is the author of the New York Times bestseller Tell Me Three Things, her debut young adult novel. She also wrote the critically acclaimed The Opposite of Love and After You, and her work has been translated into twenty-five languages. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and their two young children. Visit Julie online at juliebuxbaum.com and follow @juliebux on Twitter.