Now Is Everything

by Amy Giles

Overview

* A Bank Street Best Children's Book of 2017 * A Georgia Peach Book Award Nominee *

Read the book New York Times bestselling author Amber Smith calls “powerful and haunting,” and acclaimed author Peter Brown Hoffmeister calls “beautiful and sad.”

Now Is Everything is a stirring debut novel told in alternating THEN and NOW chapters, perfect for Sarah Dessen and Jennifer Niven fans, about what one girl is willing to do to protect her past, present, and future.

The McCauleys look perfect on the outside. But nothing is ever as it seems, and this family is hiding a dark secret.

Hadley McCauley will do anything to keep her sister safe from their father. But when Hadley’s forbidden relationship with Charlie Simmons deepens, the violence at home escalates, culminating in an explosive accident that will leave everyone changed.

When Hadley attempts to take her own life at the hospital post-accident, her friends, doctors, family, and the investigator on the case want to know why. Only Hadley knows what really happened that day, and she’s not talking.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062495761
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	09/18/2018
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	384
Sales rank:	708,890
Product dimensions:	5.20(w) x 7.90(h) x 1.00(d)
Age Range:	14 - 17 Years

About the Author

Amy Giles is the author of Now Is Everything and That Night. She lives on Long Island with her family. Visit her at www.amygiles.net and follow her @AmySGiles on Twitter.

Editorial Reviews

Powerful and haunting, Now is Everything explores the complexities of family and abuse, as we follow one girl on her courageous journey to choose love over hate and hope over fear.” — Amber Smith, New York Times bestselling author of The Way I Used to Be

“Hadley is living the hidden, complex life that so many young people know - a teenager trapped inside her dysfunctional family. This beautiful and sad book will push you toward an unexpected conclusion. You won’t be able to put this novel down.” — Peter Brown Hoffmeister, author of Too Shattered For Mending

“An incredibly powerful and moving debut that is not to be missed, Now is Everything tackles the tragic reality and heartbreak of familial abuse that will haunt you long after you’ve turned the last page. This book is a must read.” — Erin L. Schneider, author of Summer of Sloane

“Now is Everything is equal parts heartbreaking, unflinching, and hopeful. Hadley’s story will no doubt reach readers who need it.” — Kara Thomas, author of The Darkest Corners and Little Monsters

“NOW IS EVERYTHING is a gripping, suspenseful, and moving story that asks the question: what are you willing to do for the people you love? Both heart-breaking and heart-restoring, this book grabbed me from the very first line and never let go.” — Robin Roe, author of A List of Cages

“…[P]alpable despair and desperation, conveyed in well-paced first-person chapters, increase the tension as the truth of the accident slowly emerges. A tragic exploration of why people sometimes protect their abusers.” — Kirkus Reviews

“Giles’ debut is impeccably paced with deep, well-rounded characters that propel the reader through…a story that is relatable and emotionally investing. Once readers pick up Hadley’s story, they will have difficulty putting it down, desperately rooting for her to win. An admirably crafted debut that will haunt readers.” — Booklist (starred review)

“A thoughtful and poignant story with a strong narrative arc and well-crafted, realistic characters.” — Publishers Weekly

“The novel develops with an intensity that will both shock and haunt readers. [T]his reviewer felt like sending Giles a thank-you card for providing such an unforgettable experience. This is a must-purchase for all libraries and will appeal to fans of Sarah Dessen or John Green.” — Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA)

“[U]nfolds in alternating “then” and “now” chapters, creating a compelling mystery, which will hook curious, as well as reluctant, readers. Main and minor characters alike are fully fleshed and authentic, each with their own flaws. VERDICT A must-have for collections where thrillers and realistic fiction are popular.” — School Library Journal

“A painful, powerful and necessary read that is tinged with hope.” — BookPage.com

“This is a heartbreaking and sensitively told story that readers won’t soon forget.” — Bookish.com

“The book effectively depicts the relentless fear and secrecy that overcomes young people and adults alike when faced with abusive relationships; a note with provides resources for those dealing with domestic abuse.” — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

“NOW IS EVERYTHING is a wonderfully crafted novel that will leave you speechless, and is perfect for fans of Robin Roe’s A LIST OF CAGES.” — Teenreads.com

From the Publisher

NOW IS EVERYTHING is a gripping, suspenseful, and moving story that asks the question: what are you willing to do for the people you love? Both heart-breaking and heart-restoring, this book grabbed me from the very first line and never let go.”

Robin Roe

Giles’ debut is impeccably paced with deep, well-rounded characters that propel the reader through…a story that is relatable and emotionally investing. Once readers pick up Hadley’s story, they will have difficulty putting it down, desperately rooting for her to win. An admirably crafted debut that will haunt readers.

Booklist (starred review)

Hadley is living the hidden, complex life that so many young people know - a teenager trapped inside her dysfunctional family. This beautiful and sad book will push you toward an unexpected conclusion. You won’t be able to put this novel down.

Peter Brown Hoffmeister

Now is Everything is equal parts heartbreaking, unflinching, and hopeful. Hadley’s story will no doubt reach readers who need it.”

Kara Thomas

NOW IS EVERYTHING is a wonderfully crafted novel that will leave you speechless, and is perfect for fans of Robin Roe’s A LIST OF CAGES.

Teenreads.com

A painful, powerful and necessary read that is tinged with hope.

BookPage.com

The book effectively depicts the relentless fear and secrecy that overcomes young people and adults alike when faced with abusive relationships; a note with provides resources for those dealing with domestic abuse.

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

09/18/2017
Behind the nearly perfect grades and family fortune, 17-year-old Hadley McCauley is hiding a terrible secret. Her father, Miles, demands total respect and complete obedience, and he wakes Hadley up every morning for intense runs and weight-lifting sessions to ensure that she remains in peak condition for lacrosse. Beyond his controlling tendencies, Miles also physically abuses his family. Hadley does everything she can to guide her father’s attention away from her younger sister while keeping the violence a secret, but things take a turn for the worse when she falls for classmate Charlie Simmons and breaks her father’s no-dating rule. Debut novelist Giles movingly explores child abuse and its many insidious forms; she recounts Hadley’s story in chapters that alternate between past and present, giving readers a broad understanding of abuse while weaving in Hadley’s first romantic relationship. It’s a thoughtful and poignant story with a strong narrative arc and well-crafted, realistic characters. A list of resources is included for readers who need help or know others who do. Ages 14–up. Agent: Alexandra Machinist, ICM. (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly

An incredibly powerful and moving debut that is not to be missed, Now is Everything tackles the tragic reality and heartbreak of familial abuse that will haunt you long after you’ve turned the last page. This book is a must read.

Erin L. Schneider

The novel develops with an intensity that will both shock and haunt readers. [T]his reviewer felt like sending Giles a thank-you card for providing such an unforgettable experience. This is a must-purchase for all libraries and will appeal to fans of Sarah Dessen or John Green.

Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA)

Powerful and haunting, Now is Everything explores the complexities of family and abuse, as we follow one girl on her courageous journey to choose love over hate and hope over fear.

Amber Smith

The book effectively depicts the relentless fear and secrecy that overcomes young people and adults alike when faced with abusive relationships; a note with provides resources for those dealing with domestic abuse.

Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

This is a heartbreaking and sensitively told story that readers won’t soon forget.

Bookish.com

11/01/2017
Gr 9 Up—From the outside, 17-year-old Hadley's life seems perfect. She's the disciplined captain of the lacrosse team, in the running for salutatorian, and applying to the same Ivy League university that her dad attended. What nobody knows is that between her dad's brutal and uncompromising expectations and her mom's neglect, Hadley is barely keeping it together. The only good thing about her family is her vivacious little sister, Lila, whom Hadley will do anything to protect. Enter Charlie, Hadley's longtime crush. Without meaning to, the protagonist falls deeply in love, but leaning on her secret new boyfriend means leaning away from the sister who so desperately needs her protection from the violence of their family. Months later, Hadley is in the psychiatric ward of the hospital, the sole survivor of a plane crash that has destroyed her family. While she is tormented by the past and unsure how to live with her mistakes, a police investigation is circling ever closer to the truth. Hadley's increasingly complex story unfolds in alternating "then" and "now" chapters, creating a compelling mystery, which will hook curious, as well as reluctant, readers. Main and minor characters alike are fully fleshed and authentic, each with their own flaws. Unusual for angsty YA, the caring adults in Hadley's life sense there is something amiss and repeatedly reach out to offer her support. VERDICT A must-have for collections where thrillers and realistic fiction are popular.—Leighanne Law, Scriber Lake High School, WA

School Library Journal

2017-08-02
Airplane-crash survivor Hadley's motivations for attempting suicide are explored in chapters that alternate between flashbacks of her life and her current stay in a psychiatric facility.Hadley's pre-accident life seemed charmed—she's the rich, white, academically successful senior captain of her high school lacrosse team. She's also incredibly lucky to have survived the private plane crash that killed both her parents (her father was pilot). Even luckier, her adored 10-year-old sister, Lila, missed the flight. And yet, within hours of the crash, Hadley attempts suicide. This raises red flags for the crash investigator, who begins interviewing her friends to understand what might have happened during the flight. Through his interviews, Hadley's pre-accident flashbacks, and her counseling sessions, a very different picture of her life emerges. Her father, who initially seems like an overactive helicopter parent, actually uses violence at home to control his daughters and his wife, who refuses to intervene. Motivated by a desire to protect Lila from their father's attentions, Hadley has largely complied with his demands. That changes when she begins a forbidden romance destined to be discovered by her father. His clever punishment is to shift his controlling, violent attention toward Lila, prompting Hadley to consider extreme measures. Her palpable despair and desperation, conveyed in well-paced first-person chapters, increase the tension as the truth of the accident slowly emerges. A tragic exploration of why people sometimes protect their abusers. (Fiction. 14-18)

Kirkus Reviews