Simon Sort of Says

A Newbery Honor Book written by Erin Bow, winner of the Governor General’s and TD Children’s Literature Awards.

Ask Simon O’Keeffe why his family moved to tiny Grin And Bear It, Nebraska, and he’ll tell you they were driven out of Omaha by alpacas.

In Simon’s version of the story, a blessing of the animals went sideways, his dad got fired from his church job, and the whole family moved to the National Quiet Zone, where the internet and cell phones are banned so astronomers can scan the sky for signs of alien life.

But there’s another story too — a story about a locked classroom, an active shooter, and a media cycle that refuses to let Simon go, even years later.

To everyone who knows what happened, Simon is either a miracle or a sob story. But Simon just wants to be Simon: a twelve-year-old in high tops and a Minecraft hoodie. Moving to the last town in America where no one can Google you is a chance for Simon to start fresh. To rewrite the narrative. And with the help of two new friends, a puppy, and a giant radio telescope, he’s determined to say something new.