In this brilliantly written tragicomedy from acclaimed Morris finalist Len Vlahos comes a story about a girl whose dying father does the unthinkable–puts his life up for auction online.
When fifteen-year-old Jackie discovers that her father has been diagnosed with a terminal brain tumor, her whole world starts to crumble. She can’t imagine how she’ll live without him.
Then, in a desperate act to secure his family’s future, Jackie’s father does the unthinkable–he puts his life up for auction on eBay. Jackie can do nothing but watch and wait as an odd assortment of bidders, some with nefarious intentions, drive the price up higher. The fate of her entire family hangs in the balance.
But no one can predict how the auction will finally end, or any of the very public fallout that ensues. Life as Jackie knows it is about to change forever . . .
Fifteen-year-old Jackie Stone is a prisoner in her own house. Everything she says and does 24/7 is being taped and broadcast to every television in America. Why? Because her dad is dying of a brain tumor and he has auctioned his life on eBay to the highest bidder: a ruthless TV reality show executive at ATN.
Gone is her mom’s attention and cooking and parent-teacher conferences. Gone is her sister’s trust ever since she’s been dazzled by the cameras and new-found infamy. Gone is her privacy. Gone is the whole family’s dignity as ATN twists their words and makes a public mockery of their lives on Life and Death. But most of all, Jackie fears that one day very soon her father will just be . . . gone. Armed only with her ingenuity and the power of the internet, Jackie is determined to end the show and reclaim all of their lives, even in death.
Life in a Fishbowl has been translated into 10 different languages and published in 18 different markets.
BOOK DETAILS
- ISBN: 9781681196169
- Pages: 328 pages
- Age: 14 to 18
- Recommended Reading Level: 9th grade & up
- Publisher: Bloomsbury
- Publication Date: January 3, 2017
- YA/Young Adult/Teen
- Reality TV
- Death
- Family
- Mental Health
- Humor