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Goodbye Stranger
	Original cover art for Goodbye Stranger. Modified slightly for publication.
Author	Rebecca Stead
Cover artist	Marcos Chin
Language	English
Genre	Children's novel
Published	2015
Publisher	Wendy Lamb Books
Publication place	United States
Pages	304
ISBN	978-0-385-74317-4
Website	Official website

Goodbye Stranger is a 2015 young adult realistic fiction novel written by Rebecca Stead that details the social and personal challenges facing modern middle school students.

Plot summary

The novel, set in New York City, is told from two intertwining perspectives. The first follows the set of friends "who drew creatures on their homework" and initially met in fourth grade, who are now entering seventh grade. Bridget "Bridge" Barsamian (who draws a three-eyed Martian) was involved in a serious accident and missed her third grade year while in the hospital; she starts hanging out with Sherm Russo, another seventh grader in Tech Crew, the school's stagehand organization. Tabitha "Tab" Patel (who draws a funny bird) becomes involved with the Human Rights Club at school. Emily "Em" (no surname given, who draws a spotted snake) is athletic and is starting to attract attention from boys.

In the second perspective, the story is told in the second person point of view. It revolves around an unnamed student who ditches school and avoids her friends on Valentine's Day. It is clear the student knows the first group and lives in the same neighborhood, but her identity has kept a mystery throughout much of the novel. Near the end of the story, this character is reviewed as Tab's (Tabitha's) sister.

Development

Stead said in 2015 that "Goodbye Stranger came from my thinking about and observing middle-school girls and the intense pressure they are under. It’s an interesting stage of life. Kids are changing so quickly, intellectually and physically, and have so many complicated questions about their identity, about how they see themselves, how others see them, and how they want to be seen."^[1] Bridge wears cat ears because of a chance encounter Stead had with a stranger in the street: "The idea came from a girl. She was wearing cat ears. And I said, 'Nice ears.' And she said, 'Thanks, I've been wearing them for a year. I don't know why.' And then she ran away."^[2]

Publication history

— (4 August 2015). Goodbye Stranger (1st, trade ed.). Wendy Lamb Books. ISBN 978-0-385-74317-4. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
— (4 August 2015). Goodbye Stranger (1st, library ed.). Wendy Lamb Books. ISBN 978-0-375-99098-4. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
— (4 August 2015). Goodbye Stranger (1st, ebook ed.). Wendy Lamb Books. ISBN 978-0-307-98085-4. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
— (2 May 2017). Goodbye Stranger (1st, pbk ed.). Wendy Lamb Books. ISBN 978-0-307-98086-1. Retrieved 10 June 2018.

Reception

Meg Wolitzer, reviewing for The New York Times, said the novel "sensitively explores togetherness, aloneness, betrayal and love" and the second storyline "succeeds as a cautionary tale that signals what may lie ahead for the younger girls."^[3]

Awards

Goodbye Stranger received a 2016 Boston Globe–Horn Book Fiction Honor Award.^[4] National Public Radio named the novel to its 2015 list of Great Reads.^[5] School Library Journal named the novel to one of its Best Books of 2015.^[6] Booklist made the novel an Editors' Choice in 2015.^[7]

References

^ ^a ^b Lodge, Sally (21 May 2015). "First Look: Rebecca Stead's 'Goodbye Stranger'". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
^ Rebecca Stead (4 August 2015). "The Bonds Of Friendship Stay Strong In 'Stranger'". NPR (Interview). Interviewed by Melissa Block. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
^ Wolitzer, Meg (19 August 2015). "Rebecca Stead's 'Goodbye Stranger'". The New York Times. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
^ "Goodbye Stranger: Author Rebecca Stead's 2016 BGHB Fiction Honor Speech". The Horn Book. 1 December 2016. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
^ Kenin, Justine (2015). "Goodbye Stranger, by Rebecca Stead". National Public Radio. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
^ "Best Books 2015, Middle Grade: Goodbye Stranger". Best Books 2015. School Library Journal. Retrieved 10 June 2018.
^ "Booklist Editors' Choice: Books for Youth, 2015". Booklist. 1 January 2016. Retrieved 11 June 2018.

External links

Rebecca Stead (6 August 2015). "Rebecca Stead, Author of Goodbye Stranger" (Interview). Interviewed by Lora Shinn. Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
Rebecca Stead (18 November 2015). "Chat With Author of "Goodbye Stranger" Rebecca Stead" (Interview). Interviewed by Camryn Garrett. Huffpost. Retrieved 11 June 2018.

Reviews

Bird, Elizabeth (19 March 2015). "Review of the Day: Goodbye Stranger by Rebecca Stead". A fuse 8 Production [blog]. School Library Journal. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
"Goodbye Stranger (starred review)". Kirkus Reviews. 6 May 2015. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
"Goodbye Stranger (starred review)". Publishers Weekly. 12 May 2015. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
Hunter, Sarah (15 May 2015). "Goodbye Stranger (starred review)". Booklist. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
Brabander, Jennifer M. (11 August 2015). "Review of Goodbye Stranger (starred review)". The Horn Book. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
Hunt, Jonathan (12 December 2015). "Goodbye Stranger and Rhythm Ride". Heavy Medal: A Mock Newbery Blog. School Library Journal. Retrieved 11 June 2018.