logo
Wrong email address or username
Wrong email address or username
Incorrect verification code
Okay for Now - Gary D. Schmidt
Okay for Now
by: (author)
As a fourteen-year-old who just moved to a new town, with no friends and a louse for an older brother, Doug Swieteck has all the stats stacked against him. So begins a coming-of-age masterwork full of equal parts comedy and tragedy from Newbery Honor winner Gary D. Schmidt. As Doug struggles to... show more
As a fourteen-year-old who just moved to a new town, with no friends and a louse for an older brother, Doug Swieteck has all the stats stacked against him. So begins a coming-of-age masterwork full of equal parts comedy and tragedy from Newbery Honor winner Gary D. Schmidt. As Doug struggles to be more than the “skinny thug” that his teachers and the police think him to be, he finds an unlikely ally in Lil Spicer—a fiery young lady who “smelled like daisies would smell if they were growing in a big field under a clearing sky after a rain.” In Lil, Doug finds the strength to endure an abusive father, the suspicions of a whole town, and the return of his oldest brother, forever scarred, from Vietnam. Together, they find a safe haven in the local library, inspiration in learning about the plates of John James Audubon’s birds, and a hilarious adventure on a Broadway stage. In this stunning novel, Schmidt expertly weaves multiple themes of loss and recovery in a story teeming with distinctive, unusual characters and invaluable lessons about love, creativity, and survival.
show less
Format: Hardcover
ASIN: B007K4F6ZS
Publisher: Clarion Books
Pages no: 368
Edition language: English
Bookstores:
Community Reviews
An Un-Calibrated Centrifuge
An Un-Calibrated Centrifuge rated it
5.0 Okay for Now
Wow wow wow! This is what I'm here for. The first book from NPR's Ultimate Backseat Bookshelf that I enjoyed. When I started I worried it was going to be too much. But then I got into the characters and the story and it's one of those books you can't stop reading (which leads to you almost crying ...
A Reading Vocation
A Reading Vocation rated it
4.0 Book 95/100: Okay for Now by Gary Schmidt
This is one of those books I wouldn't have read on my own but that ended up to be a worthwhile read nonetheless. It starts out a little slow and ends feeling a bit overpacked and jumbled, but has a long, satisfying stretch of "middle" inbetween.The voice is what makes this book shine. Gary Schmidt m...
Reading is my ESCAPE from Reality!
Reading is my ESCAPE from Reality! rated it
3.0 Okay for Now
Touching realistic fiction story about a boy growing up in 1968. How the Vietnam war touches his family and how he learns that he can do whatever he wants, makes a very touching story. It has some sad moments but the ending is hopeful.
VeganCleopatra
VeganCleopatra rated it
1.0 Okay for Now
1.5 starsI tried to like this, I really did, but Doug was entirely too annoying for me to care about him as a character. The repetitive and obnoxious statements of "So what? So what?", "Do you know what it feels like?" "stupid" and "I'm not lying" were enough to make me want to throw my Kindle (I di...
My Never Ending List
My Never Ending List rated it
5.0 Don't know why I waited so long.
Why I waited so long to read this book is beyond me. I instantly fell in love with Doug and even though he is a chump (don’t you just love that!) his view of the world is always optimist. Being the target of many, he knows what’s headed his way, yet he doesn’t dwell on the negative aspects of it, ...
Other editions (10)
Books by Gary D. Schmidt
On shelves
Share this Book
Need help?