The Loose Ends List

April 11, 2016
Maddie is eager to spend the summer before college completing her list of missed opportunities with her best friends until her wealthy grandmother delivers a bombshell. Dying of pancreatic cancer, Gram bids Maddie and family to take an eight-week cruise on The Wishwell, a “death-with-dignity” ship catering to its passengers’ last desires. Together with her parents, brother, sex-crazed cousin Janie, assorted aunts and uncles, and Gram’s boyfriend, Bob Johns, Maddie travels around the world collecting “snow globe moments” to cherish forever. Along the way, she falls in love with Enzo, a British college student headed to Egypt. Joyful shipboard scenes eventually give way to sadness as members choose their final moments. Afraid of death, Maddie must come to terms with the decision her grandmother and the other Wishwellians make. First-time author Firestone’s memorable characters offer powerful images of bodies betraying lively minds and spirits. While the often crass dialogue and narration can feel at odds with the overall emotional tone (“I can’t escape the horrifying visual of Gram’s bony body getting slammed by old Bob Johns”), the novel culminates in an embracing celebration of life. Ages 14–up. Agent: Sara Crowe, Harvey Klinger.

Starred review from April 15, 2016
A cancer diagnosis derails a teen's summer plans.In her wildest dreams, white and privileged Maddie Levine never could have imagined that she'd spend the summer before college anywhere other than with her best girlfriends, kissing boys and soaking up sun at the club. She certainly never imagined that her beloved grandmother and family matriarch would be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and whisk the whole family off on an eight-week, "death-with-dignity" cruise as her final farewell. While readers know from the very beginning how this story will end, they will be surprised to discover that the journey is far more about life than death. Maddie's first-person account is filled with humor and fun, introducing readers to a raunchy, heartwarming, and endearingly dysfunctional family. The story is made all the richer by a cast of quirky supporting characters that includes her two gay uncles, a sweet and slutty cousin, her larger-than-life grandmother, and a small handful of terminal patients and their families who are celebrating and grieving alongside them. Best of all is the achingly romantic love story that unexpectedly blossoms between Maddie and a fellow shipmate and lends the story much-appreciated moments of passion and levity.A poignant and important story about compassion, love, and the decision to live life on your own terms--right up to the very last minute: all aboard. (Fiction. 14-18)

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April 1, 2016

Gr 9 Up-Maddie O'Neill Levine and her grandmother, Astrid North O'Neill, are best friends. That is, until her Gram announces to her family that she has terminal cancer and has arranged for one last trip, a secret "death with dignity" cruise on the Wishwell. Maddie had planned to hang with her friends by the lake all summer, but instead her family drops everything for one last trip with their dying Gram. They embark on a voyage of discovery that serves as a catalyst to discuss death, dying, and grief, where the cousins, especially Maddie, are forced to grow up. The trip starts with Maddie's immediate O'Neill family, but by the end "the Wishwellian" ship becomes a family brought together by death. The characters on the ship are relatable, endearing, and lovable. Filled with equal amounts of laugh- and tear-inducing moments, this debut novel will be impossible to put down. Fans of Jenny Downham's Before I Die or Jonathan Tropper's This Is Where I Leave You will enjoy this unique story about dying on one's own terms. Mentions of drinking, drugs, and sex make this title appropriate for older readers. VERDICT With its fresh, original plot and thought-provoking themes, this title will have a high teen appeal.-Morgan O'Reilly, Riverdale Country School, NY

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2016
Maddie O'Neill has big plans for her pre-college summer. Then Gram announces that she is terminally ill, and she books the entire family on an unconventional "death with dignity" cruise to help her work through her bucket list. Thoughtful, funny, and endearing, this debut novel explores a full spectrum of emotions regarding grief, end of life, and moving on.

(Copyright 2016 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)