John Corey Whaley- Noggin

This past Sunday, I had the honor of meeting author John Corey Whaley. He was here in San Diego for an author event at our local independent book store (Yellow Book Road). He was in town to help promote his new novel Noggin(Antheneum, 2014).

Here is a description of the book:

Listen—Travis Coates was alive once and then he wasn’t.
Now he’s alive again.
Simple as that.

The in between part is still a little fuzzy, but Travis can tell you that, at some point or another, his head got chopped off and shoved into a freezer in Denver, Colorado. Five years later, it was reattached to some other guy’s body, and well, here he is. Despite all logic, he’s still sixteen, but everything and everyone around him has changed. That includes his bedroom, his parents, his best friend, and his girlfriend. Or maybe she’s not his girlfriend anymore? That’s a bit fuzzy too.

Looks like if the new Travis and the old Travis are ever going to find a way to exist together, there are going to be a few more scars.

Oh well, you only live twice.

It’s an intriguing idea for a novel. The concept of waking up five years later and having to deal with not only a new body, but how your loved ones have changed in the past five years. I can’t wait to read it.

It was interesting to hear some behind the scenes info about the story and about his other novel winner of the 2012 Michael L. Printz and William C. Morris Awards Where Things Come Back (Antheneum, 2012). It’s always fun to hear a little bit about an author’s process and I learn something new every time.

I will post my book thoughts later once I’ve had a chance to read the novel. In the meantime, happy reading and enjoy your summer.

Suzanne Santillan

Writing on the Sidewalk