Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Oct 2016
368 pages
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publication Information
A whip-smart, heart-wrenching debut YA novel about first love, first loss, and filmmaking that will delight fans of Jandy Nelson and Jennifer Niven.
In the movie version of Amelia's life, the roles have always been clear. Her older brother, Toby: definitely the Star. As popular with the stoners as he is with the cheerleaders, Toby is someone you'd pay ten bucks to watch sweep Battle of the Bands and build a "beach party" in the bathroom. As for Amelia? She's Toby Anderson's Younger Sister. She's perfectly happy to watch Toby's hijinks from the sidelines, when she's not engrossed in one of her elaborately themed Netflix movie marathons.
But recently Toby's been acting in a very non-movie-version way. He's stopped hanging out with his horde of friends and started obsessively journaling and disappearing for days at a time. Amelia doesn't know what's happened to her awesome older brother, or who this strange actor is that's taken his place. And there's someone else pulling at her attention: a smart, cute new boyfriend who wants to know the real Amelia - not Toby's Sidekick. Amelia feels adrift without her star, but to best help Toby - and herself - it might be time to cast a new role: Amelia Anderson, leading lady.
"Starred Review. With a memorable, full-of-feeling narrator at its helm, this moving exploration of the effects of mental illness and a family's new normal marks Wunsch as a writer to watch. 14 and up." - Publishers Weekly
"Thumbs up for close siblings but thumbs down for this bland issues-novel debut." - Kirkus
This information about The Movie Version was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Emma Wunsch has written movie reviews for The Washington Free Press, worked in a used bookstore, taught college-level writing, and published short fiction and journalism in a variety of publications including The Best of Bellevue Literary Review. She lives in Lebanon, New Hampshire, with her husband and two daughters.
The House on Biscayne Bay
by Chanel Cleeton
As death stalks a gothic mansion in Miami, the lives of two women intertwine as the past and present collide.
The Flower Sisters
by Michelle Collins Anderson
From the new Fannie Flagg of the Ozarks, a richly-woven story of family, forgiveness, and reinvention.
The Funeral Cryer by Wenyan Lu
Debut novelist Wenyan Lu brings us this witty yet profound story about one woman's midlife reawakening in contemporary rural China.
Your guide toexceptional books
BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.
