The Year I Stopped Trying

Booksmart meets The Perks of Being a Wallflower in this novel of overachieving, existential crises, growing up, and coming out, from the author of Girl Crushed and Never Have I Ever.

Mary is having an existential crisis. She's a good student, she never gets in trouble, and she is searching for the meaning of life. She always thought she'd find it in a perfect score on the SATs. But by junior year, Mary isn't so sure anymore.

The first time, it's an accident. She forgets to do a history assignment. She even crosses "history essay" off in her pristine planner. And then: Nothing happens. She doesn't burst into flames, the world doesn't end, the teacher doesn't even pull her aside after class.

So she asks herself: Why am I trying so hard? What if I stop?

With her signature wit and heaps of dark humor, Katie Heaney delivers a stunning YA novel the sprints full-force into the big questions our teen years beg--and adeptly unravels their web.

Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers
Published: 11/16/2021
Pages: 256
Weight: 0.85lbs
Size: 8.20h x 5.80w x 1.00d
ISBN: 9780593118283
Age: Young Adult


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 10/15/2021
Publishers Weekly 10/25/2021
School Library Journal 11/01/2021 pg. 78

About the Author
Katie Heaney is the author of the memoirs Never Have I Ever and Would You Rather?, and the novels Dear Emma and Public Relations. She is a senior health writer at the Cut, and you can find her on Twitter at @KTHeaney.