The Possibility of Now

by Kim Culbertson

Overview

What happens when you’ve been planning for the future, but everything falls apart now.

Mara James has always been a perfectionist with a plan. But despite years of overachieving at her elite school, Mara didn’t plan on having a total meltdown during her calculus exam. Like a rip-upthe- test-and-walk-out kind of meltdown. And she didn’t plan on a video of it going viral. And she definitely didn’t plan on never wanting to show her face again.

Mara knows she should go back, but suddenly she doesn’t know why she’s been overachieving all these years. Impulsively, she tells her mom she wants to go live with her estranged dad in Tahoe. Maybe in a place like Tahoe, where people go to get away from everyday life, and a dad like Trick McHale, a ski bum avoiding the real world, Mara can figure things out.

Only Tahoe is nothing like she thought. There’s awesome new friends and hot boys and a chance to finally get to know Trick, but there’s also still massive amounts of schoolwork. Can Mara stopping planning long enough to see the life that’s happening right now?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781338134711
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	03/28/2017
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	304
Product dimensions:	5.20(w) x 7.90(h) x 0.70(d)
Lexile:	740L (what's this?)
Age Range:	12 - 18 Years

About the Author

Kim Culbertson is the author of The Wonder of Us; The Possibility of Now; Catch a Falling Star; Instructions for a Broken Heart, a Northern California Book Award winner; and Songs for a Teenage Nomad. She lives in Northern California with her husband and daughter, her favorite travel companions. For more about Kim, visit www.kimculbertson.com.

Read an Excerpt

My thing has always been my academics–-the tests and essays and the 100 books you're supposed to read before you graduate from high school (3 different lists cross-checked and compiled into a list of 216 books of which I still need to read 47). I have only, ever, gotten As. My goal: to be the Ranfield valedictorian. So what happens when you devote your whole self to a goal, you give your best self, but still fall short of it? I couldn't possibly have worked harder than I did, not and actually sleep, so that's not it. People think it comes easily for me, but it doesn't. I work my butt off for my grades. I stay up late every night, spend every weekend studying, no exceptions. I have taken schoolwork on every family vacation since I started high school. If I'm not playing tennis or sitting in class or going to choir rehearsal or eating dinner with my family, I'm working on school because I don't know how to want anything else. Be anything else. And then I had a very bad day and all that changed. I fell flat on my YouTube-viral-video-worthy face. So it's occurred to me in these last few weeks that somewhere along the line, I may have been given faulty information. Apparently, you can do your best and not achieve your goal. Turns out, you can't do anything just because you set your mind to it. Which changes things, doesn't it?

Editorial Reviews

11/02/2015
All her life, Mara James has been the perfect daughter and the perfect student, winning a scholarship to a prestigious private school and staying on track to be valedictorian. Then she has a meltdown during a calculus test, an event someone tapes and shares online. Humiliated and shamed, Mara leaves San Diego to spend a semester with her biological father, a ski bum in Tahoe whom she hasn’t seen in nearly a decade. In a story about finding the delicate balance between hard work and fun, pleasing others and pleasing oneself, Culbertson (Catch a Falling Star) introduces a fragile heroine who embodies all the traits of a workaholic living for the future instead of the present. Other archetypal characters include Isabel, an Olympic hopeful with goals as lofty as Mara’s; Beck, a rich, spoiled rebel at odds with his conformist father; and laid-back Logan, who wins Mara’s heart. Anyone who has felt the pressure to be number one will empathize with Mara’s struggle to accept setbacks, move forward, and feel the joy of spontaneity. Ages 12–up. Agent: Melissa Sarver White, Folio Literary Management. (Jan.)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for The Possibility of Now“Culbertson has once again crafted a cast of relatable teen characters and experiences and constructed a story reinforcing the idea that perfect isn't all it's cracked up to be. Both a cautionary tale against convention as well as an invitation to take uncharacteristic strides forward, this will hit close to home for many teens.” —Booklist“Anyone who has felt the pressure to be number one will empathize with Mara's struggle to accept setbacks, move forward, and feel the joy of spontaneity.” —Publishers Weekly“A solid read for realistic fiction addicts.” —School Library Journal“Culbertson throws enough romance and party fun into her story to keep readers engaged, but the main thrust of the story is how Mara comes to terms with who she is, what her relationship will be with her father, and discovering her real goals in life.” —Kirkus“Culbertson has created a realistic view of middle-class teen life today. This is a quick read that may help some teens deal with high school stress.” —VOYAPraise for Catch a Falling Star"Culbertson writes with sensitivity and sympathy, crafting an entertaining but perceptive character study." —Kirkus Reviews"Culbertson is a capable writer, and she gives Carter a good heart that shines through." —Publisher's Weekly"[R]eaders will enjoy every minute of Carter and Adam's revelatory moments and conflicts." —School Library Journal"Thoughtful and romantic, Catch a Falling Star shines with insight about the choices we make and the worlds we create." —Jessi Kirby, author of Moonglass, In Honor, and Golden

From the Publisher

01/01/2016
Gr 9 Up—Overachiever Mara James recently experienced her first panic attack. It happened in calculus class, and a humiliating video of the incident has gone viral. Mara leaves her competitive private school in San Diego to hide out in the slower-paced ski resort town where her father lives. In this new environment, she makes friends, explores different interests, and taps into what she really wants from life. Culbertson's choice phrasings concisely paint each scene with ease and clarity. Readers can imagine the ski slopes and coffee shops without being bombarded with superfluous details. What will further attract teens is that although the story touches on existential issues, the tone is never heavy-handed. The protagonist faces each complexity with an open-mindedness that allows readers to think for themselves about the bigger questions being asked. Mara recognizes that her obstacles are categorically first-world problems, but readers who are not as privileged will still be able to identify with her dilemma. Relentless testing, the college application process, and an unknown future are all pressures that will resonate with teens. The descriptions of snow skiing and wood-burning fireplaces make for a perfect excuse to momentarily forget about the stresses of school in preference of delving into a good book with hot cocoa in hand. VERDICT A solid read for realistic fiction addicts.—Jaclyn Anderson, Madison County Library System, MS

School Library Journal

2015-10-06
Normally at the top of the class, list-making Mara freaks out during a calculus test and travels to spend time with her dad, a former professional skier. The driven scholarship student has organized her life with the goal of becoming valedictorian of her posh, superdemanding private school. Then a video of her shrieking as she tears up all the tests she can reach goes viral. The school allows her to take a few months off but doesn't ease up on the homework. She sees the opportunity for a break in her estranged, biological father, Trick, who lives in a tiny cabin as a caretaker and works at a ski shop in Squaw Valley, near Lake Tahoe. There, she's attracted to both supermodel-handsome, rich Beck and ski bum Logan, who seems distant but volunteers to teach her to ski. As possible romance looms in the air, Mara struggles to come to terms with Trick, who has made no effort to be her father. She uncovers her parents' history and tries to recover from her breakdown but avoids therapy. Skiing is preferable to homework—maybe she could just live here? Culbertson throws enough romance and party fun into her story to keep readers engaged, but the main thrust of the story is how Mara comes to terms with who she is, what her relationship will be with her father, and discovering her real goals in life. Psychology with snow. (Fiction. 12-18)

Kirkus Reviews