Frannie in Pieces (Laura Geringer Books) [Paperback]

Delia Ephron (Author), Chad Beckerman (Illustrator)

Book Description

Series: Laura Geringer Books | Publication Date: May 12, 2009

What does you in—brain or heart?

Frannie asks herself this question when, a week before she turns fifteen, her dad dies, leaving her suddenly deprived of the only human being on planet Earth she feels understands her. Frannie struggles to make sense of a world that no longer seems safe. She discovers an elegant wooden box with an inscription: Frances Anne 1000. Inside, Frannie finds one thousand hand-carved and -painted puzzle pieces. She wonders if her father had a premonition of his death and finished her birthday present early. Feeling broken into pieces herself, Frannie slowly puts the puzzle together. But as she works, something remarkable begins to happen: She is catapulted into a foreign landscape suspended in time where she can discover her father as he was B.F.—before Frannie.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Ephron writes with ease and agility…this is an exceptional story.”- (Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books (starred review) )

“Readers who like a good laugh along with a healthy dose of human drama and a touch of magical realism will like this one.”- (KLIATT (starred review) )

“Wonderful, multifaceted story weaves the best of science fiction, coming-of-age, family relationships, teenage angst, and mystery together with humor and perfect pacing.” (Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA) (Starred Review) )

“Imaginative and insightful.”- (Publishers Weekly (starred review) )

About the Author

Delia Ephron is a critically acclaimed novelist and screenwriter. Her most recent book, Frannie in Pieces, received four starred reviews, was a Book Sense Pick, and was named to the New York Public Library Books for the Teen Age list. She is also the author of Big City Eyes, Hanging Up, and How to Eat Like a Child. Her screenwriting credits include The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, You've Got Mail, Bewitched, Hanging Up, and Michael. She lives in New York City with her husband and their dog, Honey Pansy Cornflower Bernice Mambo Kass.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 13 and up
  
• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: HarperTeen; Reprint edition (May 12, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060747188
• ISBN-13: 978-0060747183
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 5.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,243,995 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Saving the Blues for Last, October 2, 2008

By 

Judith Keenan "BookShorts" (Toronto Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Frannie in Pieces (Hardcover)

Length:: 2:39 Mins

Saving the blues for last is a wonderful subtitle for this teen novel, on a number of levels. The 15-year old protagonist, Frannie, loses her father to a sudden heart attack. Amongst his belongings, she finds a 1000-piece, handmade puzzle he has left behind, presumably for her. Drawn into its mesmerizing assembly, she literally saves the hardest part - the blue pieces of the sky and water - for last, and in the process, discovers her divorced parents' love affair, works through her grief, her blues, and comes through complete. The novel makes you cry and laugh at the same time, just as Delia Ephron's famous books and films for adults have done (Sleepless in Seattle, You've Got Mail, Hanging Up, and more).

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Piece of a puzzle, February 20, 2008

By 

Kim Baccellia, "YA Books Central reviewer... (Southern California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Frannie in Pieces (Hardcover)

What does you in-brain or heart? Frannie asks herself this question when, a week before she turns fifteen, her dad dies, leaving her suddenly deprived of the only person on Earth she feels understands her. She discovers an elegant wooden box with an inscription: Frances Anne 1000. Inside, Frannie finds one thousand hand-carved and painted puzzle pieces. Feeling broken herself, she slowly puts the puzzle together, bit by bit. But as she works, something happens. She's pulled into a foreign landscape, a place suspended in time where she discovers her father as he was B.F.-before Frannie.
This story moved like a piece of a puzzle. Confusing at first, but piece by piece the reader finally gets the whole picture of why the puzzle was so important to the father.
Frannie's emotions bounce around from page to page. I felt the author did do a good job of showing the struggle Frannie felt when her father died and trying to make sense of it all. Her friend Jenna was a little too ditsy though. What friend really blows off someone who's father just died? I didn't believe it.
A fast paced read that is hard to put down. You can't help but want to follow Frannie as she discovers not only more about her beloved father but about herself as well.

1 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Touching, October 21, 2007

By 

Smitty (NY, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Frannie in Pieces (Hardcover)

I admit I got this hoping it would be funny, so I was somewhat disappointed when it was more mellow. It's a good YA book in general though not very remarkable, in my opinion. I found myself a little bored, but then again I've sort of grown out of the genre now that I'm no longer in high school. I'm sure someone younger who can relate to Frannie will enjoy it more than I did.