Adam Selzer

Play Me Backwards (Reprint) Adam Selzer

Marc Notes: A promising and popular student in middle school, Leon Harris has become a committed slacker but with graduation approaching and his middle school girlfriend possibly returning to town, Leon's best friend Stan, who claims to be Satan, helps him get back on the right track--for a price. Publisher Marketing: A committed slacker enlists the help of his best friend (who may or may not be the devil) to get his act together in this "timelessly true to life" ("Booklist") novel filled with humor, awkwardness, and honesty, ideal for fans of "The Perks of Being a Wallflower." Leon Harris isn't exceptional and he isn't popular. He's the kind of guy that peaked in middle school, when once upon a time he was in the "gifted" program and on the fast track to Ivy League glory. Now, a high school senior, he's a complete slacker who spends his time hanging out in a third-rate ice cream parlor with his best friend, Stan, a guy who (jokingly, Leon thinks) claims to be Satan. Committed to his sloth, Leon panics when he finds out that Anna, the love of his life aka middle school girlfriend, might be moving back to town. Determined to get his act together, Leon asks Stan for help. Stan gives him a few seemingly random and mysterious assignments. Date a popular girl. Listen to "Moby-Dick," the audiobook. Find the elusive white grape slushee. Join the yearbook committee. As each task brings Leon one step away from slacker city and one step closer to Anna, he starts to wonder if maybe he shouldn't have promised Stan his soul after all... Review Citations: Publishers Weekly 05/26/2014 (EAN 9781481401029, Hardcover) School Library Journal 07/01/2014 pg. 111 (EAN 9781481401029, Hardcover) Booklist 08/01/2014 pg. 69 (EAN 9781481401029, Hardcover) Voice of Youth Advocates 08/01/2014 (EAN 9781481401029, Hardcover) Bulletin of Ctr for Child Bks 10/01/2014 (EAN 9781481401029, Hardcover) Kirkus Reviews 05/15/2014 (EAN 9781481401043, Open Ebook) Bulletin of Ctr for Child Bks 10/01/2014 (EAN 9781481401043, Open Ebook) Contributor Bio:  Selzer, Adam Adam Selzer lived in Des Moines back before it was cool, then tried out a series of small Georgia towns that will probably never be cool before settling in Chicago. In addition to several books on Chicago history and ghostlore, he's the author of several young adult and middle grade novels, including "How To Get Suspended and Influence People" (which is part of the ALA's Banned Books Week packet), "I Kissed a Zombie and I liked It", and "Sparks" (under the name SJ Adams, a Stonewall Honor book for 2013). He has seen Bob Dylan in concert more than forty times, holds a world record for "Most Richard Nixon jokes in a Children's Book," and often performs music, both solo and with various bands, at science fiction conventions. Visit him online at AdamSelzer.com.