• Booklist Reviews : Booklist Reviews 2021 February #1
  Jeremy Heere is pitifully uncool, and in a desperate bid to escape his low rung on the social ladder and hopefully attract his crush, Christine, he swallows a squip, a nanocomputer that occupies his brain and instructs him on what to say and how to act. Bertozzi and Levithan's graphic adaptation of Vizzini's 2004 novel of the same name preserves many of the cultural touchstones of the early aughts (Jeremy wears a shirt that says, "I Let the Dogs Out," for instance), which initially makes it seem a little dated. As the story progresses, however, those touchstones not only serve to emphasize how eerily prescient Vizzini's novel was, but also offer biting commentary on social media, as, unsurprisingly, the squip does more harm than good. Sharp teenage dialogue and classic high-school plot points (parties, drinking, gossip, weird teachers, a school play) will likely ring true to teen readers, and Bertozzi's crisp outlines and expressive faces, perfectly complemented by the steely gray and blue palette, do an excellent job of visualizing the sf-lite atmosphere. Grades 9-12. Copyright 2021 Booklist Reviews.

Ned Vizzini began writing for The New York Press at the age of fifteen. At nineteen, he had his first book published, Teen Angst? Naaah…. He was also author of three other books for young adults including The Other Normals, Be More Chill, the first young adult novel ever chosen as a Today Show Book Club pick, and which is the basis of the musical of the same name, and It's Kind of a Funny Story, which NPR named #56 of the "100 Best-Ever Teen Novels" of all time and which is the basis of the film of the same name. The last novel published before his death, House of Secrets, was a middle-grade fantasy novel co-written with filmmaker Chris Columbus; it debuted on the New York Times best-seller list.David Levithan is the author or co-author of many novels about teen life, including Boy Meets Boy, Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist (written with Rachel Cohn), Every Day, Two Boys Kissing, 19 Love Songs, and Will Grayson, Will Grayson (written with John Green). By day, he's a publisher and editor, working on other people's novels and graphic novels. This is his first graphic novel adaptation, which he did out of his love for Ned Vizzini and his admiration for both the novel's and the musical's many enthusiastic fans. You can find him on Twitter at @loversdiction.

Nick Bertozzi is an award-winning cartoonist. Some of his most notable works include The Salon, Lewis & Clark, Persimmon Cup, the New York Times best-selling Shackleton: Antarctic Odyssey, the New York Times best-selling Jerusalem: A Family Portrait (written by Boaz Yakin), and Becoming Andy Warhol. He has received the Ignatz Award and multiple Harvey Awards, and teaches cartooning at the School of Visual Arts. Nick lives in Queens, NY, with his wife and daughters. Visit him online at nickbertozzi.com.