Battle of the Bands
- Subject
- Performing Arts - Music
- Age
- Teen
- Format
- Hardcover
- Pages
- 320
- Publisher
- Candlewick Press (MA)
- Size
- 15.2 cm × 23.2 cm
- ISBN
- 9781536214338
Fifteen young adult authors and one real-life rock star band together for one epic—and interconnected—take on a memorable high school rite of passage.
A daughter of rock ’n’ roll royalty has a secret crush. A lonely ticket taker worries about his sister. An almost-famous songwriter nurses old wounds. A stage manager tires of being behind the scenes. A singer-songwriter struggles to untangle her feelings for her best friend and his girlfriend. In this live-out-loud anthology, the disparate protagonists of sixteen stories are thrown together for one unforgettable event: their high school’s battle of the bands. Told in a harmonic blend of first- and third-person narrative voices, roughly chronological short stories offer a kaleidoscopic view of the same transformative night. Featuring an entry from Justin Courtney Pierre, lead vocalist of Motion City Soundtrack, Battle of the Bands is a celebration of youth, music, and meeting the challenges of life head-on.
With stories by
Brittany Cavallaro
Preeti Chhibber
Jay Coles
Katie Cotugno
Lauren Gibaldi
Shaun David Hutchinson
Ashley Poston
Jenny Torres Sanchez
Sarah Nicole Smetana
Eric Smith
Jenn Marie Thorne
Sarvenaz Taghavian
Jasmine Warga
Ashley Woodfolk
Jeff Zentner
and featuring Motion City Soundtrack’s Justin Courtney Pierre.
A daughter of rock ’n’ roll royalty has a secret crush. A lonely ticket taker worries about his sister. An almost-famous songwriter nurses old wounds. A stage manager tires of being behind the scenes. A singer-songwriter struggles to untangle her feelings for her best friend and his girlfriend. In this live-out-loud anthology, the disparate protagonists of sixteen stories are thrown together for one unforgettable event: their high school’s battle of the bands. Told in a harmonic blend of first- and third-person narrative voices, roughly chronological short stories offer a kaleidoscopic view of the same transformative night. Featuring an entry from Justin Courtney Pierre, lead vocalist of Motion City Soundtrack, Battle of the Bands is a celebration of youth, music, and meeting the challenges of life head-on.
With stories by
Brittany Cavallaro
Preeti Chhibber
Jay Coles
Katie Cotugno
Lauren Gibaldi
Shaun David Hutchinson
Ashley Poston
Jenny Torres Sanchez
Sarah Nicole Smetana
Eric Smith
Jenn Marie Thorne
Sarvenaz Taghavian
Jasmine Warga
Ashley Woodfolk
Jeff Zentner
and featuring Motion City Soundtrack’s Justin Courtney Pierre.
Data provided by BiblioShare.
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What reviewers said
This impressive collection manages to sustain its jubilant energy, and each author’s distinct voice shines through without the whole feeling at all inconsistent. The stories are original enough to keep readers turning pages, while the overall conceit—drama both on and off stage—ties it all together. . . . An impressive feat impeccably pulled off.
[An] entertaining collection. . . Chronicling the breakups, make-ups, make-outs, and breakout performances of myriad intersectionally diverse teens, this anthology’s deliberate pacing allows each entry to stand on its own while harmonizing pleasantly with the larger melody of the night’s overlapping characters and events.
The energy of this collection will draw young people into the drama of being in a band, falling in love, the ups and downs of competition, and the unknown after high school all through heartfelt and often hilarious moments that build up to an epic finish. . . . A must-have for all YA collections, especially where anthologies are popular.
Musical teens can unite around this collection both for its unapologetic excitement for music and the representation it promotes. Teens will see themselves in the everyday elements and the desires of the characters, whether they want to live out their dreams to rock on, strike back against heartbreak, or be authentically themselves.
Featuring musicians, stage managers, ticket takers, a daughter of rock ‘n’ roll royalty, and more, these short stories rock (and roll).
The book, which threads together sixteen stories from top young adult writers (as well as Motion City Soundtrack frontman Justin Courtney Pierre), captures the ups and downs of band life in exhilarating/excruciating detail that any musician will recognize as being authentic and anyone not in a band will want to experience for themselves. From rehearsal squabbles to pre-show bonding to stage fright (and stage joy), each author gets the little details right in service of their stories.
