The scattered sea – shaken houses on the cliffs overlooking the ocean had been built long ago, but they mirrored the people who came and went: reclusive and solitary, wind-beaten and up for grabs”.

What I found was a surprising series of interconnected story strands based around moments of American small-town living, from young adult perspectives. I read these interlinked stories with increasing levels of anxiety for the characters and a growing sense of admiration for the author, as she charts the lives of the girls and boys involved as they try to navigate their way through a succession of crises not of their own making. That being said, I think that the reason this book is rather dull is because of the sheer amount of stories that were being presented. Each of the characters were individual and almost completely different from the others, living in different circumstances and experiencing different things. As a result, not one of the stories or characters was extremely developed, making the book and its individual characters rather forgettable. It also made the book feel like it was dragging on, despite how short it is. Admittedly I don’t usually read short stories, but with this title, Everyone Dies Famous in a Small Town, I just had to give it a try and I was not disappointed.

Bonnie-Sue Hitchcock Press Reviews

Like any good young adult book it is written to gain and hold the attention of a typically difficult audience (teenagers), so I knew it would be engaging at the very least. Whether they are brought together by the spread of wildfire, by the priest who’s moved from state to state or by the hunt for a missing child, these incredible tales blaze with secrets, rage and love. The writing in this superb story is simply outstanding. The isolated, sparsely populated community is captured with an economy of style that reminded me of Hemmingway at his best:

As each ‘chapter’ contains a different protagonist you can be forgiven for wondering how this character or story relates to the others. This children’s book is ideal for: Book clubs and a short story collection text study in years 10 & 11.This is not actually a book of short stories, instead it is an elegant collection of story strands that allow the whole picture to be revealed from multiple perspectives. I like that it doesn’t shy away from controversial issues, making each story strand intriguing and a little challenging at times.

This book left me feeling like I’d received an all encompassing, warm hug which I never want to be released from.Sidenote: I'd probably look up trigger warnings more in depth, but I will say that there is sexual abuse involved, among other things) Poppy has a make-believe friend, Elizabeth the mermaid, and they both appear again in the seventh story ‘ Alaska was wasted on Us,’ at Camp Wildwood, a summer camp in Alaska. You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight

Priests are not to be trusted. Father Lazaria’s serial abuse causes immense damage and is a narrative that runs through several of the stories. Delia’s parents “still expected her to go to church and receive Communion from Father Monster’s shrivelled, stinky hand” but at the age of sixteen, Delia wreaks her revenge which leads to devastating consequences.Famous in a Small Town" has a moderately fast tempo in the key of B major. The main chord pattern is B sus2-E sus2/B-F ♯/B. [2] The narrator describes the simplicities of living in a small town, where everyone knows each other and no one needs to have their face in a magazine to be famous. Thus, everybody dies "famous in a small town." It’s brilliant, unique, mind numbing! All those stories are missing pieces of the puzzle. You can read and enjoy them separately but as you realize the connections of them by catching the small details, you feel more satisfied and you adore the witty writing style of the author!