Almost Nothing Happened

 Almost Nothing Happened

Reviewed By  Grasshopper2       December 11, 2024

 

Author  Meg Rosoff

Distributor:      Bloomsbury AU
ISBN:                 9781526646194
Publisher:         Bloomsbury. Imprint Bloomsbury YA
Release Date:   November 2024  

Website:    https://www.bloomsbury.com/au/almost-nothing-happened-9781526646194/ 

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Classified as a young adult novel, everything about this book calls out to be read. From the busy cover to the catchy title……..Really….in France…..Nothing happened? This is a charming, delightful story that will keep you reading to the end.

Callum is seventeen and has behaved predictably. His parents thought he could do an educational exchange to France, where he may come to grips with the real world. He agrees, dreaming of wild parties, music and adoring girls.

It is a short trip from England, but when he arrives at his new home he finds the parents rather aloof and fast talking, the brother and sister into the jazz scene, and his only friend is Titou, “A small hairy mutt.”  To alleviate his boredom Callum walks Titou frequently much to the dog’s delight.

The end is in sight as Callum meets his friend at the Gare du Norde to catch the Eurostar home. However, resentful and cranky that he has had such a miserable stay, the boy misses the train and walks to his cousin’s place several kilometres away. His cousin is not welcoming but invites him to a concert. This is the beginning of the adventure that the teenager craved, until it gets almost too scary for him. Murder, drug money and night rides on the back of a lovely young woman’s scooter await him.

Excitement and terror go hand in hand in this racy novel but we always read with a smile and squeeze of compassion, for seventeen can be a tough year.

Teen Fiction, Young Adult