SYNOPSIS:
Finn Easton sees the world through miles instead of minutes. It’s how he makes sense of the world, and how he tries to convince himself that he’s a real boy and not just a character in his father’s bestselling cult-classic book. Finn has two things going for him: his best friend, the possibly-insane-but-definitely-excellent Cade Hernandez, and Julia Bishop, the first girl he’s ever loved.

Then Julia moves away, and Finn is heartbroken. Feeling restless and trapped in the book, Finn embarks on a road trip with Cade to visit their college of choice in Oklahoma. When an unexpected accident happens and the boys become unlikely heroes, they take an eye-opening detour away from everything they thought they had planned—and learn how to write their own destiny.

WHY SHOULD YOU CHECK IT OUT?
Finn’s dad wrote a controversial cult-fave sci-fi novel, in which the main character shares Finn’s name. Now, Finn has to wonder if he’s real or a character in a book. How meta can you get! We know that’s just the beginning of Finn’s bound-to-be hilarious, crude, and touchingly real adventures as he heads out on a roadtrip with his bestie.

Sadly, we don’t think we’d recommend this one on cover alone. It’s really strange, with its horse falling through the sky. It makes us think of the whale and the potted plant in HITCHHIKER’S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY, which is at least a positive association.

But we don’t have to rec on cover alone! Because author Andrew Smith is the shiznit. Especially when it comes to getting inside the mind of a sexually frustrated, sensitive, and intelligent young narrator, he has you covered. We’re told to expect less apocalyptic or brutal fare as we saw in GRASSHOPPER JUNGLE and WINGER; so check those out too!

OTHER YA MAG COVERAGE

Andrew Smith talks GRASSHOPPER JUNGLE

Our review of WINGER

EARLY REVIEWS SAY…
[O]ffers nuance and depth, including but not limited to Finn’s headlong, sweetly real stumble into love with a girl named Julia, vivid descriptions of Southern California canyon country, Finn’s touchingly honest, kind relationship with his dad, and his fascinating habit of viewing time in terms of miles rather than minutes. All of this and so many more exquisite details make this a breathtaking read. (Kirkus Reviews)

Road-trip shenanigans, condom-purchasing embarrassments, drunken parties, and stumbling attempts at first love all factor into the novel, but amid the loopy escapades, Finn’s musings about the universe’s constant dispersal and recycling of atoms… provide a memorable perspective on human (in)significance. (Publishers Weekly)

ANDREW SMITH ON 100 SIDEWAYS MILES…

NECESSARY DETAILS
YA Contemporary
Hardcover & ebook,288 pages
Published on September 9th 2014 by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers (ISBN 1442444959)