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I'LL STOP THE WORLD

by Lauren Thoman ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 2023

A novel look at strange (and stranger) things.

“The future’s open wide” according to “I Melt With You,” the song by Modern English that lends other lyrics to the title of this time-looping fiction debut. Maybe they meant the past, too?

Justin Warren, a disaffected student waiting for high school to end, finds himself enmeshed in hard-to-explain (and understand) circumstances in this mystery saga of time travel, adolescent heartache, and coming-of-age angst. Finding himself transported after an accident from 2023 to the year 1985, Justin is confronted with perplexing details about his complicated family history. Among the pre-millennial teens Justin meets is Rose Yin, a do-gooder and diligent student who becomes one of his few allies in unraveling the mysteries of not only his time travel, but also a 1985 crime that affected the course of his family’s life. (Rounding out the cast of characters for both settings are enough teens, teachers, and family members of varying backgrounds, sexual orientations, and personality types to populate whatever screen adaptation of the work results from the book’s selection by Mindy Kaling for her Mindy’s Book Studio publishing and production project.) Realizing he may have a last-minute opportunity to alter his family’s tragic history, Justin puzzles through the facts as he recalls them and the truths he uncovers in his new (old) hometown. While dealing with her own teenage miseries and insecurities, Rose lends a sympathetic ear and transportation to the out-of-sync Justin—who bemoans the lack of crime-solving technology available to him in 1985 and struggles to use a rotary phone in one hilarious episode. Thoman’s ambitious timeline of events is both expansive and compressed, with the storyline unfolding over the course of both one week and 38 years, and her portrayal of teenagers in varying degrees of crisis is sympathetic.

Pub Date: April 1, 2023

ISBN: 9781662509971

Page Count: 446

Publisher: Mindy's Book Studio

Review Posted Online: Jan. 24, 2023

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2023

SCIENCE FICTION | MYSTERY & DETECTIVE | TIME TRAVEL | DETECTIVES & PRIVATE INVESTIGATORS | GENERAL MYSTERY & DETECTIVE | GENERAL FICTION

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New York Times Bestseller

IT STARTS WITH US

by Colleen Hoover ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 18, 2022

Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.

The sequel to It Ends With Us (2016) shows the aftermath of domestic violence through the eyes of a single mother.

Lily Bloom is still running a flower shop; her abusive ex-husband, Ryle Kincaid, is still a surgeon. But now they’re co-parenting a daughter, Emerson, who's almost a year old. Lily won’t send Emerson to her father’s house overnight until she’s old enough to talk—“So she can tell me if something happens”—but she doesn’t want to fight for full custody lest it become an expensive legal drama or, worse, a physical fight. When Lily runs into Atlas Corrigan, a childhood friend who also came from an abusive family, she hopes their friendship can blossom into love. (For new readers, their history unfolds in heartfelt diary entries that Lily addresses to Finding Nemo star Ellen DeGeneres as she considers how Atlas was a calming presence during her turbulent childhood.) Atlas, who is single and running a restaurant, feels the same way. But even though she’s divorced, Lily isn’t exactly free. Behind Ryle’s veneer of civility are his jealousy and resentment. Lily has to plan her dates carefully to avoid a confrontation. Meanwhile, Atlas’ mother returns with shocking news. In between, Lily and Atlas steal away for romantic moments that are even sweeter for their authenticity as Lily struggles with child care, breastfeeding, and running a business while trying to find time for herself.

Pub Date: Oct. 18, 2022

ISBN: 978-1-668-00122-6

Page Count: 352

Publisher: Atria

Review Posted Online: July 26, 2022

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2022

ROMANCE | CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE | GENERAL ROMANCE | GENERAL FICTION

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by Colleen Hoover

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Colleen Hoover Dominated Book Sales in 2022

by Alex Michaelides ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 16, 2024

More style than substance.

Michaelides takes a literary turn in his latest novel, employing an unreliable narrator, the structure of classical drama, and a self-conscious eye to dismantling the locked-room mystery.

The novel starts off with a murder, and with seven people trapped on an isolated Greek island lashed by a "wild, unpredictable Greek wind." The narrator, soon established as Elliot Chase, then zooms out to address the reader directly, introducing the players—most importantly movie star Lana Farrar. We meet her husband, Jason Miller, her son, Leo, and her friend Kate Crosby, a theater actress. We learn about her rise to fame and her older first husband, Otto Krantz, a Hollywood producer. We learn about Kate’s possibly stalling career and Leo’s plan to apply to acting schools against his mother’s wishes. We learn about Jason’s obsession with guns. And in fragments and shards, we learn about Elliot: his painful childhood; his May–September relationship with an older female writer, now dead; his passion for the theater, where he learned “to change everything about [himself]” to fit in. Though he isn't present in every scene, he conveys each piece of the story leading up to the murder as if he were an omniscient narrator, capable of accessing every character's interior perspective. When he gets to the climax, there is, indeed, a shooting. There is, indeed, a motive. And there is, of course, a twist. The atmosphere of the novel, set mostly on this wild Greek island, echoes strongly the classical tragedies of Greece. The characters are types. The emotions are operatic. And the tragedy, of course, leads us to question the idea of fate. Michaelides seems also to be dipping into the world of Edgar Allan Poe, offering an unreliable narrator who feels more like a literary exercise. As an exploration of genre, it’s really quite fascinating. As a thriller, it’s not particularly surprising.

Pub Date: Jan. 16, 2024

ISBN: 9781250758989

Page Count: 320

Publisher: Celadon Books

Review Posted Online: Oct. 7, 2023

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2023

SUSPENSE | THRILLER | SUSPENSE | PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER | GENERAL THRILLER & SUSPENSE | GENERAL FICTION

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THE MAIDENS

by Alex Michaelides

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Review: “I’ll Stop the World”

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Time’s Bridge: Teens work against the clock to save lives in a time-twisty murder mystery.

by Tina Chambers &  Chapter16.org

book review i'll stop the world

I’ll Stop the World

By Lauren Thoman. Mindy’s Book Studio. 446 pages. $28.99.

Justin Warren, the protagonist of Nashville writer Lauren Thoman’s debut novel, I’ll Stop the World , finds himself in a bit of a pickle. It seems he has suddenly time-traveled, through no fault of his own, back to the 1985 version of his hometown:

I slept in Rose’s car last night, tossing fitfully in the back seat, jerking awake at every sound, expecting to open my eyes to a hospital, or a riverbed, or the afterlife, or anything that made more sense than this, but I remained stubbornly here, two decades before I was born.

Justin is a senior in high school with a hopeless crush on his best friend, a dead-end job, a dysfunctional family, and no prospects for the future (no pun intended). He fears that he “came from the factory defective.” The last thing he remembers is driving his car off Wilson Bridge on his way home from the annual fall pep rally.

Fellow high school senior Rose Yin has problems of her own, including her own secret crush, a troubled relationship with her stepsister, and the feeling that she’s merely “a footnote in other people’s stories.” When she drives her car across the same bridge on her way home from the same rally in 1985, she narrowly avoids hitting Justin lying on the road. When she stops to help him, they begin to share information with predictably confusing results.

When the sheriff’s deputy arrives and threatens to arrest Justin, Rose must decide what to do, which is how she finds herself “lying to a police officer, all to help a complete stranger who thought he was from the future. If anyone found out about this, she’d be grounded for the rest of her life. … And that was a best-case scenario, assuming this guy didn’t kill her and dump her in the river. But she couldn’t just sit there and watch him get arrested. Not when there was a small but insistent part of her that was — inexplicably — sure he was telling the truth.”

book review i'll stop the world

From that point on, Justin and Rose resolve to team up and find out why Justin has been snatched from his own time and deposited into the past. Rose believes he’s there to prevent the deaths of his grandparents, who are due to perish in a fire within a week of Justin’s arrival, if the events of his own timeline hold true. But even the stalwart Rose has her doubts: “God didn’t send people back in time for no reason. Or even for small reasons. At least, she didn’t think that was how God worked. … Assuming, of course, it was God. And not just some random freak accident like Justin thought.”

As they strategize and attempt to gather evidence, they must also run interference with Rose’s family and friends, who are skeptical of her story that Justin is a secret pen pal who simply dropped in unannounced for a few days. Her stepmother is running for mayor against a ruthless opponent who will use any excuse to cast aspersions against her family, including the color of their skin. (Rose’s father is Asian and her stepfamily is Black, while Justin is white.) As if that weren’t enough to worry about, the usual tensions and strains of high school are also on their minds, especially imagining what life will be like after graduation and navigating their journey toward independence.

But Justin has the worst of it, not knowing whether he will ever see his own home and family again. “Something about the word — home — snags like a thorn. All I’ve wanted for as long as I can remember was a life other than the one I had. But since I knew it wasn’t possible, I never allowed myself to hope. Then somehow, I got my wish. And now all I want is to go back. How messed up is that?” Thoman has crafted a satisfying time-twisty murder mystery — with plenty of suspicious characters — that is sure to keep readers guessing and second-guessing all the way through to its thrilling conclusion.

About the author:

Tina Chambers has worked as a technical editor at an engineering firm and as an editorial assistant at Peachtree Publishers, where she worked on books by Erskine Caldwell, Will Campbell, and Ferrol Sams, to name a few. She lives in Chattanooga.

For more local book coverage, please visit  Chapter16.org , an online publication of Humanities Tennessee.

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The Story Sanctuary

I’ll Stop the World Lauren Thoman Mindy’s Book Studio Published April 1, 2023

Amazon  |  bookshop  |  goodreads, about i’ll stop the world.

The end and the beginning become one in a heart-pounding coming-of-age mystery about the power of friendship, fate, and inexplicable second chances.

Is it the right place at the wrong time? Or the wrong place at the right time?

Trapped in a dead-end town, Justin Warren has had his life defined by the suspicious deaths of his grandparents. The unsolved crime happened long before Justin was born, but the ripple effects are still felt after thirty-eight years. Justin always knew he wouldn’t have much of a future. He just never imagined that his life might take him backward.

In a cosmic twist of fate, Justin’s choices send him crashing into the path of determined optimist Rose Yin. Justin and Rose live in the same town and attend the same school, but have never met―because Rose lives in 1985. Justin won’t be born for another twenty years. And his grandparents are still alive―for now.

In a series of events that reverberate through multiple lifetimes, Justin and Rose have a week to get Justin unstuck in time and put each of them in control of their futures―by solving a murder that hasn’t even happened yet.

CW: I’LL STOP THE WORLD contains depictions of emotional abuse, alcoholism and excessive drinking, underage drinking, smoking, racism, discussions of homophobia, and violent bullying.

I'll Stop the World on Goodreads

I picked up this book for its Back to the Future vibes, and definitely found myself intrigued by the premise. I’ve enjoyed other books set in the 1980s and even another 1980s time-travel one called SPIN ME RIGHT ROUND . (Another book title that gets a song stuck in my head.)

What I Expected

I thought from the back cover copy that this book would be a romance with scenes alternating between the points of view of Rose and Justin. And the book does have a lot of scenes from their perspectives. There’s obviously some attraction between them, but the story never really centers a romance between the two of them.

I liked that the time-travel component does have a puzzle to it, and it’s not easy for Rose and Justin to solve. It’s a scavenger hunt mystery, where they unearth clues all along the way but only realize how those clues fit together at a critical moment in the story.

Not What I Expected

One of the things I did not expect about this book, though, is the number of point-of-view characters it contains. There are at least seven different characters with scenes from their points of view. Some only have a few scenes, but others, like Rose’s sister, appear more regularly.

There are also multiple timelines represented in the book, which makes sense since it’s a time-travel story. In the beginning, the most recent scenes chronologically were told in the present tense, while the scenes in the 1980s were told in the past tense. I expected the last scene, which returns to the present again, to be told in the present tense, so it was a little unexpected that it was in the past tense again.

I also didn’t expect a romance plot centered around Rose’s sister Lisa. I liked that the story explored what it was like for her to navigate her feelings for her friend and find the courage to speak up about her identity.

Overall, I think there’s a lot to love about this book. It’s got a diverse cast of characters and explores different kinds of relationships and complex characters. I love the 1980s time travel and 80s music vibes. I do wish that a few of the peripheral scenes from some of the minor characters had been trimmed in favor of having Rose or Justin discover information in an active way, but I still enjoyed the story with its broad cast of characters.

I'll Stop the World on Bookshop

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages  14 up.

Representation Lisa and Charlene are lesbians and in a secret romance with each other. Lisa is also Black. Rose is Asian American. References to sex, specifically that a boy and girl aren’t having it.

Profanity/Crude Language Content Extreme profanity used somewhat frequently.

Romance/Sexual Content Kissing between two girls.

Spiritual Content Justin inexplicably travels back in time to 1985.

Violent Content Some scenes show a parent/guardian saying hateful or abusive things to their child. A few scenes show a group of kids bullying another child. In a couple of scenes, the kids beat up another kid. In one scene, they make a boy eat something they’ve dropped into a toilet.

Drug Content A couple of adult characters are alcoholics. Justin drinks alcohol at a party and tries to drive himself home while intoxicated. Two adults take a drink of alcohol to celebrate something.

Note:  This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of I’LL STOP THE WORLD in exchange for my honest review.

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Book Review of I’ll Stop the World by Lauren Thoman

The black outline of a person reflecting off wet pavement in a nighttime downpour, with the title in bold pink font layered over the image.

About the Book

  • Lauren Thoman
  • Contemporary
  • Historical Fiction
  • Science Fiction
  • Asian (Non-Specified)
  • White (Non-Specified)

Grading Scale

Cover Story: Ominous BFF Charm: Mixed Bag Talky Talk: Cinematic Bonus Factors: The Eighties, Time Travel, Diversity Relationship Status: I’ll Melt With You

Cover Story: Ominous

I think this cover actually works pretty well – the ominous “figure standing in the rain” is pulled directly from the book, and with the giant title splashed over the image it’s following similar “thriller” cover trends. They could have gone heavy on the ‘80s nostalgia, but that would’ve felt out of place because the book actually does a decent job of making the ‘80s feel real and lived-in and not like a Saved by the Bell episode.

Justin lives in Stone Lake in 2023, a high-school senior who lives with his alcoholic mom and his mom’s deadbeat cousin. As someone with bad grades, no money, and not a lot of personal drive, Justin doesn’t have a lot of prospects post-high school, so he resigns himself to his Dollar General job and being his mom’s caretaker after a bad bender.

Rose also lives in Stone Lake – but in 1985. Her life is on a much different trajectory than Justin’s: her days are full of pretending not to be in love with Noah, her BFF, pretending to be the perfect daughter for her step-mom’s mayoral campaign, and pretending that it doesn’t bother her that her friend-turned-sister, Lisa, isn’t being honest about why they haven’t been as close lately.

On the nights of their respective school pep-rally bonfires, their lives are about to collide in a world-shattering way. The more Rose and Justin wonder “why us?” the more signs seem to point to a mysterious fire that burned down half of their high-school back in 1985—a fire that killed Justin’s grandparents before he was born. Will changing history send Justin back to the future, or are some things predetermined?

BFF Charm: Mixed Bag

Brown paper bag filled with various BFF charms

We get short chapters from multiple different perspectives of various people around Stone Lake, but Justin and Rose are definitely our protagonists.

As the time-traveling outsider and someone with a tougher home life, Justin’s outlook could sometimes be pessimistic and I’d get frustrated with him, wanting him to CARE more. I’m not the most peppy person out there, but I don’t think he’d get a BFF charm from me until he worked out his personal issues. As we saw with his only friend, Alyssa, having a friend’s support can only help so much when you kind of loathe yourself.

My girl, Rose, on the other hand, is the kind of person who invites some rando on the street into her car and finds him a place to stay, or fundraises for her BFF’s grandma after her garage burns down because of possible arson. Even though she has her own struggles not communicating her needs to her friends and family, she is solidly BFF material.

Swoonworthy Scale: 3

The story follows a few different relationships and potential relationships throughout, and while none of them really knocked my socks off, they fit within the context of the plot.  

Talky Talk: Cinematic

Debut author, Lauren Thoman, has given us a very cinematic novel, in that readers move through the plot at a brisk pace, being introduced to the important, often archetypal players and doling out bits of backstory at just the right times until everything comes together at the end. In Mandy Kaling’s foreword (the book is published under her new imprint), she says that after she finished reading she immediately wanted to reread it to spot all the little clues she missed, and I can see why. As I mentioned in the Cover Story, I appreciated that Thoman’s ‘80s version of Stone Lake gave you a great sense of place and time without dipping into a caricature, and I think that helped the story feel more realistic.

This was a fun and at-times poignant debut that has me excited for future books from this author!

Bonus Factor: The Eighties

A cassette tape that says "the '80s" on it

There are some plot devices that just can’t work anymore in a modern-setting when everyone is so connected with technology. It was fun seeing Rose’s world through Justin’s eyes, like when she says she and Noah will come and “pick him up later” and he just has to wait around and hope for them to show because he can’t call them while they’re out.

Bonus Factor: Time Travel

A group of teens huddled together with light swirling around them and a city on the horizon, in a scene from Project Alamanac

Do we just love time travel because of the infinite possibilities and mind-screws, or did Back to the Future just influence all of us more than we realized? This book is light on the mechanics and whys of the time traveling and focuses more on the “what will you do with this gift that’s been given to you?” Justin, ever the pessimist, also hasn’t ruled out the fact that he’s actually dead and this is all a very elaborate way for his mind to come to terms with his death.

Bonus Factor: Diversity

Faces of all different races, ethnicities and genders.

I talk about this feeling like a movie, but we know if this had actually come out in the ‘80s we wouldn’t have seen some of the faces that populate this current story. Rose and her father are Asian and her step-mom and step-sister are Black, and you can imagine that has some impact on Rose’s step-mom’s political campaign. Two of our characters are also coming to terms with their sexuality and with telling their friends and families. None of these things are major plot points, but they make the world feel real and inclusive.

Relationship Status: I’ll Melt With You

Awkward implications of that song aside, if you were ever lost in my time and needed a friend to help you figure out what to do, I’d be there for you, Book.

Literary Matchmaking

book review i'll stop the world

For parental issues and mysteries but with a more fantastical twist, try the 1980s-set Garth Nix novel, The Left-Handed Booksellers of London .

book review i'll stop the world

Emily Henry wasn’t always the premier adult romance writer she is today: her debut novel, The Love That Split the World , is a YA story filled with time-travel trope and an MLD.

book review i'll stop the world

If you want a book that will keep you on your toes and rip your heart out, check out Neverworld Wake by Marisha Pessl.

FTC Full Disclosure: I received my free review copy from Mindy’s Book Studio. I received neither money nor peanut butter cups in exchange for this review. I’ll Stop the World is available now.

book review i'll stop the world

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I'll stop the world : a novel

Daryl M.

Time travel is a staple of fiction. For well over a century writers have imagined different ways to propel their protagonists backwards and forwards through time. Sometimes they are merely observers, allowing the author to speculate on past motivations or future developments. But just as often, the protagonist is sent to the past to correct something affecting the future. Often, HOW the time traveler got to the past is unimportant compared to WHY they were sent, and what they need to fix. In her debut novel Lauren Thoman tells a tim-travelling story of discovery in which a young man must try to figure out not only how he travelled from 2023 to 1985, but why he is there, and if there is a way back?

Justin Warren’s entire existence has been defined by something that happened long before he was born: his grandparents, Bill and Veronica Warren, were killed in a fire at the local high school. Who set the fire was never identified. Their daughter, Justin’s mother, was orphaned. A few years after the fire, the high school was renamed in honor of Justin’s grandparents and their deaths have overshadowed his entire life.

At the end of a particularly difficult day, at the beginning of his senior year at Warren High School, Justin finds himself transported from 2023 to 1985. He doesn’t know how it has happened, but it soon becomes inescapable that it has. The first person he meets in 1985 is Rose Yin. It takes some convincing, but Rose believes Justin when he claims to be from the future. He doesn’t know how he got to where he is, so he has no idea how to return to where he belongs. But Rose has a theory: Justin has been sent back in time 38 years to save his grandparents from the fire that claimed them. Justin knows a little about the fire, including the date and time that it happened, but little else. And the identity of who set the fire was unknown in 2023. Can Rose and Justin solve a nearly 40-year-old crime that hasn’t happened yet and save his grandparents?

In I’ll Stop the World , Lauren Thoman’s debut novel, readers accompany Justin in his time-travelling quest to prevent his grandparents’ death. Justin’s sketchy knowledge of the fire provides the novel with an element of a ticking-time bomb as Justin must solve a crime for which he has mostly felt ambivalent at best and apathetic at worst.

While the premise of the book is fun and interesting, where Thoman really shines are her characters. She has created a diverse group of people in both time periods to populate the novel. And she does an excellent job drawing complete characters. This is especially true of her two protagonists: Justin and Rose.

Justin is a typical 2023 teenage boy. He has had a bit of a challenging upbringing and this manifests in his lack of confidence and his difficulty to express himself (Unless, of course, it is the times that he says things that are better left unsaid, such as lashing out at those closest to him and immediately regretting it.). Thoman subjects Justin to some fun and interesting “fish out of water” moments as he struggles to place a phone call on 80s technology; marvels at the differences in costs between 1985 and 2023; and waxes poetic about how spending time with people is a vastly different experience in the two time zones because in 1985, prior to cellphones and social media, you have someone’s undivided attention, which he claims is simply not the case in 2023, regardless of the other person’s best intentions.

Rose is equally nicely drawn. An optimist by nature, Rose is convinced that Justin’s journey through time must be to save his grandparents, and pursues saving them as if It is as important to her as it is to Justin. Thoman illustrates Rose’s own conflicts (Her inability to confess her true feelings to the object of her affections.) and shortcomings. Rose isn’t perfect, but she is the type of friend everyone would hope to have, especially when faced with a life-universe-altering mystery that needs solving.

Thoman does a marvelous job of laying out the breadcrumbs necessary for readers to solve the mystery of the fire along with Justin and Rose. She also does an admirable job of defying readers’ expected outcome at the end of the novel.   I’ll Stop the World is a marvelous debut!

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I'll Stop the World: A Novel

I'll Stop the World: A Novel

I'll Stop the World: A Novel

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The end and the beginning become one in a heart-pounding coming-of-age mystery about the power of friendship, fate, and inexplicable second chances.

Is it the right place at the wrong time? Or the wrong place at the right time?

Trapped in a dead-end town, Justin Warren has had his life defined by the suspicious deaths of his grandparents. The unsolved crime happened long before Justin was born, but the ripple effects are still felt after thirty-eight years. Justin always knew he wouldn’t have much of a future. He just never imagined that his life might take him backward.

In a cosmic twist of fate, Justin’s choices send him crashing into the path of determined optimist Rose Yin. Justin and Rose live in the same town and attend the same school, but have never met—because Rose lives in 1985. Justin won’t be born for another twenty years. And his grandparents are still alive—for now.

In a series of events that reverberate through multiple lifetimes, Justin and Rose have a week to get Justin unstuck in time and put each of them in control of their futures—by solving a murder that hasn’t even happened yet.

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On Writing I’ll Stop The World by Lauren Thoman

The short answer for where the idea for I’ll Stop the World came from is Back to the Future . I love time travel stories across all forms of media, but Back to the Future was probably the first one to grab hold of my heart and imagination. I’ve probably watched the whole trilogy dozens of times throughout my life.

One day, back in 2014, I was thinking about the films (I can’t even tell you if this was prompted by yet another rewatch, or if I was just randomly pondering Back to the Future ; both are equally likely), and it occurred to me just how lucky Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) is to have his best friend be a middle-aged scientific genius who has conveniently lived in Hill Valley for the past 30 years. By being able to consult with Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd) shortly after arriving in 1985, Marty is able to always know exactly what he has to do in order to return to his own time. Of course, plenty of obstacles still stand in his way, but the philosophical question of why this happened and the metaphysical question of how are never among them. 

I started thinking about what a Back to the Future -like story would look like without Doc Brown or the time-traveling Delorean. What would a kid like Marty do once he found himself in the past? What would he believe happened to him? And how might he try to get back? Those were the first seeds for I’ll Stop the World .

But the thing about inspiration, at least for me, is that it’s rarely as simple as one idea leading directly to another. The truth is that I’m constantly inspired by all sorts of things: the movies and TV shows I’m watching, the conversations I’m having with friends, the books I’m reading, the interactions I’m having with family, the events happening in the news, the emotions I’m navigating at the time. It all goes into my brain and swirls together, and the truth is that every bit of it contributed to why I’ll Stop the World turned out the way it did. 

For example, I cut my story teeth on writers like Stephen King, Michael Crichton, and Robin Hobb, who each were tremendously skilled at using multiple narrators to tell a single story. As an adult, I’m still drawn to those sorts of complex ensemble stories across all media, exemplified by shows like Lost , Broadchurch , Mare of Easttown, and even Riverdale (at least the first few seasons) .

And I still believe Breaking Bad is one of the best examples of clockwork storytelling I’ve ever seen, where every small detail wound up eventually being a relevant part of a bigger story. I love stories where the whole thing feels like a puzzle that gradually comes together over the course of the book, with each character holding their own important pieces while being totally unaware of which pieces the others have. So of course that’s what I tried to do with my own book.

And then there are the characters. I wrote Justin during years when we were exploring various neurodivergent diagnoses in our own family, navigating various academic interventions, therapy, and medication options. Justin emerged as a character with diagnosed but largely unmedicated ADHD, informed in a significant way by my own experiences. I wrote Rose as an introverted, half-Chinese, half-Irish optimist and dreamer, which is exactly who I was in high school, although of course we are very different in other ways. 

The conversations that characters like Bill, Veronica, and Diane have with their children and each other about parenting were birthed from my own thoughts and insecurities and observations as a parent. The political subplot and much of Mrs. Hanley’s story grew out of the themes present within numerous books I read about racial injustice such as The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander, The Color of Law by Richard Rothstein , and Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson, as well as the events I saw playing out in modern headlines and conversations I followed on social media every day. 

I could go on and on, trying to itemize every book I read and show I watched and article I clicked on, tying each of them to something specific in the book until my inspiration chart looks like Stan’s murder board (a reference only folks who have already read I’ll Stop the World will understand, sorry). But you get the point. When I’m asked what inspired my book, the short answer may be easy, but the real answer is “everything.” 

There is nothing that doesn’t inspire me. I am constantly swimming in inspiration. And the stories that come out of me–and I think, the stories that come out of all writers–are never just the product of one thing, but everything, everywhere, all at once . 

And before you ask, no, that movie did not come out in time to influence I’ll Stop the World . But yes, its fingerprints will definitely be on the next thing I write. 

ABOUT LAUREN THOMAN Born and raised in the suburbs of Philadelphia, PA, Lauren Thoman studied music education, though soon realized that the life of a band director was not for her. Her passion for pop culture and watching and analyzing movies and TV shows led her to become a frequent contributor to a number of prominent online pop culture outlets, such as Parade, Vulture, PopSugar, Looper, and Collider. Her debut novel, I’LL STOP THE WORLD, will be published by Mindy Kaling under her eponymous imprint with Amazon Publishing, Mindy’s Book Studio, on April 1, 2023.

She lives outside of Nashville, Tennessee with her family. Website: www.laurenthomanwrites.com Twitter: @LaurenThoman Facebook: @LaurenThomanWriter Instagram: @laurenthomanwrites

I’LL STOP THE WORLD

The end and the beginning become one in a heart-pounding coming-of-age mystery about the power of friendship, fate, and inexplicable second chances.

Is it the right place at the wrong time? Or the wrong place at the right time?

Trapped in a dead-end town, Justin Warren has had his life defined by the suspicious deaths of his grandparents. The unsolved crime happened long before Justin was born, but the ripple effects are still felt after thirty-eight years. Justin always knew he wouldn’t have much of a future. He just never imagined that his life might take him backward.

In a cosmic twist of fate, Justin’s choices send him crashing into the path of determined optimist Rose Yin. Justin and Rose live in the same town and attend the same school, but have never met―because Rose lives in 1985. Justin won’t be born for another twenty years. And his grandparents are still alive―for now.

In a series of events that reverberate through multiple lifetimes, Justin and Rose have a week to get Justin unstuck in time and put each of them in control of their futures―by solving a murder that hasn’t even happened yet.

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Book Review: ‘I’ll Stop The World: A Novel’ By Lauren Thoman

by RedCarpetCrash | Mar 15, 2023 | Books | 0 comments

book review i'll stop the world

The year is 2023, and for Justin Warren it’s his senior year of high school, with no plans for what comes next. He’s living with his alcoholic mother, and Stan, who took them in years ago. His Grandparents were killed in 1985, in a school fire, and a janitor was sent to prison for it. It’s time for the annual town bonfire, and right before that happens a body is found in the water, off of the town bridge. For Stan, this seems to bring up painful memories, and he warns Justin not to go to the bonfire, hinting something will happen. Justin gets drunk, and his car goes off the bridge, and he wakes up in 1985, with no idea how he got there. There he meets Rose, and they to piece together things, and Justin wonders if he can stop the fire, save his grandparents, and change the future. A series of dramatic twists and turns you don’t see coming, highlight this time-travel novel, which is really well written. Fans of this genre will really like this one.

You can pick up I’ll Stop The World in stores on Saturday, April 1st.

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“Lauren Thoman’s I’ll Stop the World is a whip-smart mystery with a vibrant cast of characters that gives off great eighties vibes. I was absolutely dazzled by this unputdownable genre-bending novel that’s equal parts coming-of-age suspense and emotional tale of forgiveness and second chances.” —Mindy Kaling

The end and the beginning become one in a heart-pounding coming-of-age mystery about the power of friendship, fate, and inexplicable second chances.

Is it the right place at the wrong time? Or the wrong place at the right time?

Trapped in a dead-end town, Justin Warren has had his life defined by the suspicious deaths of his grandparents. The unsolved crime happened long before Justin was born, but the ripple effects are still felt after thirty-eight years. Justin always knew he wouldn’t have much of a future. He just never imagined that his life might take him backward.

In a cosmic twist of fate, Justin’s choices send him crashing into the path of determined optimist Rose Yin. Justin and Rose live in the same town and attend the same school, but have never met—because Rose lives in 1985. Justin won’t be born for another twenty years. And his grandparents are still alive—for now.

In a series of events that reverberate through multiple lifetimes, Justin and Rose have a week to get Justin unstuck in time and put each of them in control of their futures—by solving a murder that hasn’t even happened yet.

“Thoman’s ambitious timeline of events is both expansive and compressed, with the storyline unfolding over the course of both one week and 38 years, and her portrayal of teenagers in varying degrees of crisis is sympathetic. A novel look at strange (and stranger) things.” — Kirkus Reviews

“Thoman’s sweeping debut defies categorization. A multigenerational mystery, a compulsively readable love story, an intricately woven sci-fi—whatever it is, I’ll Stop the World is the mind-bendy time-travel eighties romp we all need right now. I’m obsessed with this book.” —David Arnold, New York Times bestselling author

“ I’ll Stop the World layers mystery upon mystery, from the everyday secrets in the lives of teens coming of age in a small town now to the dark shock waves still radiating out from deaths that took place decades before. Lauren Thoman’s debut novel is a time-bending page-turner packed with twists no one will see coming. This is a story that continues to resonate long after you finish.” —Gwenda Bond, New York Times bestselling author of Stranger Things: Suspicious Minds

“In this standout debut, Lauren Thoman takes the reader on a wild ride, deftly wrapping a coming-of-age story with a clever mystery, sprinkled with eighties nostalgia that’ll have you reaching for your Bubble Yum. As I tore through the pages, I fell in love with the cast of flawed and funny characters, who felt as real as the friends I grew up with. Best of all, Thoman delivers an impossibly satisfying ending in a way only the very best time-travel storytellers can. This one should go at the top of everyone’s must-read list!” —Brianna Labuskes, Wall Street Journal bestselling author

“A brilliant, thought-provoking page-turner that so deeply sucked me into a world of richly drawn characters and fast-paced action that I never wanted to leave.” —Sonali Dev, USA Today bestselling author of The Vibrant Years

“A page-turning, time-bending mystery full of heart. I’ll Stop the World gave me a chance to solve a cold crime from a refreshing new perspective. Lauren Thoman is an exciting new talent not to be missed!” —Kara Thomas, bestselling author of That Weekend and Out of the Ashes

From the Publisher

About the author.

Lauren Thoman lives outside Nashville, Tennessee, with her husband, two children, and a rotating number of dogs and fish. Her pop culture writing has appeared in numerous online outlets including Parade , Vulture , and Collider . For more information, visit www.laurenthomanwrites.com.

  • Print length 426 pages
  • Language English
  • Sticky notes On Kindle Scribe
  • Publisher Mindy's Book Studio
  • Publication date 1 April 2023
  • File size 7930 KB
  • Page Flip Enabled
  • Word Wise Enabled
  • Enhanced typesetting Enabled
  • See all details

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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0B24448C2
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Mindy's Book Studio (1 April 2023)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 7930 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 426 pages
  • 391 in Time Travel Romance
  • 509 in Romance Time Travel
  • 630 in Time Travel Science Fiction (Kindle Store)

About the author

book review i'll stop the world

Lauren Thoman

Lauren Thoman lives outside of Nashville, Tennessee, with her husband, two children, and a rotating number of dogs and fish. Her pop culture writing has appeared in numerous online outlets including Parade, Vulture, and Collider. When she's not writing, she's probably on the hunt for tacos or coffee, or buried underneath a pile of dogs.

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Criminal Element

Book Review: I’ll Stop the World by Lauren Thoman

By john valeri.

book review i'll stop the world

Nashville’s Lauren Thoman is an admitted entertainment junkie who studied music education before following the call of pop culture. A passion for watching and analyzing content led her to contribute to such topical forums as Parade, Vulture, Pop Sugar, Looper, and Collider. Thoman recently made her debut as a novelist with the genre-bending I’ll Stop the World , published by Mindy Kaling’s Amazon imprint, Mindy’s Book Studio.

2023: Senior Justin Warren is resigned to living a small life in the town of Stone Lake. Thirty-eight years ago, his grandparents were killed in a fire at the school that now bears his family’s name (and from which he’ll soon graduate after a lackluster academic career)—an event that’s had devastating, decades-long consequences. He shares a home with his alcoholic mother and a distant relation named “Stan,” who is obsessed with the fire and a desire to exonerate the man imprisoned for setting it. Justin works at the local Dollar Tree, harbors secret romantic feelings for his one true friend, Alyssa, and hides behind an air of ambivalence. But a night of drinking and driving will have life-altering consequences after an accident inexplicably transports him back in time.

1985: High schooler Rose Yin is an idealist who, against all logical and rational thought, comes to believe that Justin does indeed belong to a future Stone Lake and has been sent back in time to right the wrongs of the past. But how to explain his presence—especially amid the scrutiny of her stepmother’s optics-driven campaign for mayor? Determined to help him despite innumerable questions and obstacles (including his fatalistic attitude), she nevertheless has her own problems to contend with; Rose is in love with her boy friend (not boyfriend), has drifted from her BFF/stepsister, and is beginning to wonder if, as Justin argues, everything really is beyond meaning and control.  

Thoman introduces her characters in situ before having them converge in the aftermath of Justin’s accident, when readers learn they’ve been existing in separate time periods. While Justin and Rose are pivotal figures, they are but two in a richly developed ensemble that includes children, teens, and adults. Each is integral to the story’s resolution, though the hows and whys remain shrouded in ambiguity until the end; further, they illuminate real-world issues—bullying, gender equality, politics, race, sexuality, and transgenerational trauma among them—that continue to confound, regardless of time and place. Though large in scope, they play out intimately–and against a ticking clock:  Can Justin both solve and stop his grandparents’ deaths to save his own future? Doing so will take belief beyond anything, and anyone, he’s ever known.   

I’ll Stop the World is a refreshingly original and whimsically nostalgic story of time travel. In an age where “the same but different” often reigns supreme, Lauren Thoman unapologetically inhabits her own unconventional (and undeniably pop culture savvy) space. The result is a clever mash-up that’s part coming-of-age story, part whodunit, and whole-hearted love letter to humanity’s capacity for betterment. While mysteries of the universe abound, it’s the internal crises of faith that most resonate. Sometimes being yourself feels like the greatest crime of all. But if you’re lucky, you’ll make a few good friends who will see your potential and help you live up to it.

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The Interrogation Room: A Q&A with Thomas Mullen, author of The Rumor Game

Book review: twenty-seven minutes by ashley tate, book review: the smoke in our eyes by james grady, book review: wander in the dark by jumata emill, john valeri.

YA Books Central

Interview With Lauren Thoman (I’ll Stop the World)

book review i'll stop the world

Today we are very excited to share a special interview with author Lauren Thoman ( I’ll Stop the World ), conducted by YABC Staff Reviewer, Lillian McCurry !

Read on to learn more about Lauren and her book!

Meet the Author: Lauren Thoman

book review i'll stop the world

Born and raised in the suburbs of Philadelphia, PA, Lauren Thoman studied music education, though soon realized that the life of a band director was not for her. Her passion for pop culture and watching and analyzing movies and TV shows led her to become a frequent contributor to a number of prominent online pop culture outlets, such as Parade, Vulture, PopSugar, Looper, and Collider. Her debut novel, I’LL STOP THE WORLD, will be published by Mindy Kaling under her eponymous imprint with Amazon Publishing, Mindy’s Book Studio, on April 1, 2023. She lives outside of Nashville, Tennessee with her family.

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About the Book: I’ll Stop the World

book review i'll stop the world

An engrossing time slip novel, an emotional coming of age story, a delightful ’80s nostaglia trip, and a suspenseful murder mystery— I’LL STOP THE WORLD by Lauren Thoman defies categorization and genre even as it offers a host of surprises and delights for readers. Publishing April 1, 2023, the novel is the first debut to be released by Mindy’s Book Studio, Mindy Kaling’s eponymous imprint with Amazon Publishing. Mindy expressed that she fell in love with the book because it’s “fun and entertaining,” and at the same time, will make the reader think about “fate, the nature of existence, the power of forgiveness, and second chances.”

While the novel unfolds via multiple perspectives from an endearing cast of diverse characters, the story centers on two teens from two different times. In 2023, Justin Warren feels trapped in a dead-end life that’s defined by the suspicious deaths of his grandparents 38 years prior in a school fire, and he’s unable to imagine any kind of real future for himself. An unexplainable twist of fortune brings him crashing into the path of determined optimist Rose Yin. Justin and Rose live in the same town and attend the same high school, but have never met before—because Rose lives in 1985. Justin won’t be born for another twenty years. And in Rose’s time, his grandparents are still alive—or at least they will be for another week. Against the odds, Justin and Rose band together with the goal to solve the mystery of his future grandparents’ deaths and stop the deadly fire before it happens, with the hope that changing the future will also get Justin back to his own time. But every choice has unexpected consequences, and no reader will anticipate the shocking (and utterly satisfying) finale.

~Author Chat~

Lillian: For me, I blink and feel like the 1980s was yesterday, but I know that isn’t the case. What drew you to that time period for Justin’s adventure?

Title: I’ll Stop the World

Author: Lauren Thoman

Release Date: April 1, 2023

Publisher: Mindy’s Book Studio

Genre: YA, SciFI

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I'll Stop the World by Lauren Thoman

November 13, 2023 by Debcapsfan Leave a Comment

book review i'll stop the world

This is the story of Justin, accidentally or maybe purposefully sent back from the present day to 1985 where his grandparents are murdered in a fire. He meets Rose Yin, the stepdaughter of a woman running for Mayor. She wants to help Justin because he needs help and she seems like a helpful person. There is not as much depth given to her character as Justin’s because we also get POVs from the soon to be dead grandparents, Rose’s sister (she exists to be a lesbian character) Shawn, the sister’s popular boyfriend who seems to be hiding some anger issues. There’s also Noah, the dreamboat Rose has been friends with most of her life who she has a serious crush on.

I liked this book a lot, the dialogue between the teenagers felt real, even between a 2023 kid and a 1985 kid. There was one section between Noah and Shawn talking about their feeling which felt a little forced, but otherwise it was good. I will warn people that there’s another character’s little brother who is bullied terribly by a kid named Robbie. The descriptions are very graphic. (And not really there for any good reason.)

After Justin’s grandparents are killed in a fire, he grows up with his mother and a relative who seems to be there to keep them barely afloat. Justin’s a kid that’s been surviving his whole life, and honestly, it was pretty refreshing that when he meets Rose he suddenly doesn’t become all hearts and sunshine. He’s as cynical as ever. This book was good and the suspense made my palms sweat a little.

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Lauren Thoman - Author

“ In an age where “the same but different” often reigns supreme, Lauren Thoman unapologetically inhabits her own unconventional (and undeniably pop culture savvy) space. ”

book review i'll stop the world

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Coming July 9, 2024 from Thomas & Mercer

You Shouldn’t Be Here

Two strangers search for the truth behind bizarre occurrences no one else dares to discuss—only to discover that they’re connected by secrets that could destroy them both. A thrilling and twisty novel by the acclaimed author of the Mindy’s Book Studio pick I’ll Stop the World.

When sixteen-year-old Angie Stewart starts hearing a mysterious voice in her house, she’s thrilled at the possibility of a ghost. Finally, something interesting is happening in her boring hometown of East Henderson, Pennsylvania. But why is she the only one who can hear it? And what does it want from her?

Meanwhile, first-year teacher Madelyn Zhao just got the keys to her new home, which is located close to her job, within walking distance of a dog park—and, most importantly, in the town where her cousin went missing several years ago. No one in East Henderson wants to talk about what happened, but Madelyn is determined to find answers.

As the two strangers search for clues, their investigations begin to point toward the same dark place. But by the time they realize that the truth could be deadly, it’s too late to turn back. And someone out there will stop at nothing to make sure their secrets stay buried.

book review i'll stop the world

“A whip-smart mystery with a vibrant cast of teenagers that gives off great ‘80s vibes.”

- Mindy Kaling

I’LL STOP THE WORLD

Available now in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audio

Trapped in a dead-end town, Justin Warren has had his life defined by the suspicious deaths of his grandparents. The unsolved crime happened long before Justin was born, but the ripple effects are still felt after thirty-eight years. Justin always knew he wouldn’t have much of a future. He just never imagined that his life might take him backward.

In a cosmic twist of fate, Justin’s choices send him crashing into the path of determined optimist Rose Yin. Justin and Rose live in the same town and attend the same school, but have never met―because Rose lives in 1985. Justin won’t be born for another twenty years. And his grandparents are still alive―for now.

In a series of events that reverberate through multiple lifetimes, Justin and Rose have a week to get Justin unstuck in time and put each of them in control of their futures―by solving a murder that hasn’t even happened yet.

I’LL STOP THE WORLD is the first debut published by Mindy’s Book Studio, six-time Emmy nominee Mindy Kaling’s eponymous imprint with Amazon Publishing. Mindy’s Book Studio is a boutique story studio designed to publish emerging and established diverse voices and imagine books from page-to-screen.

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I'll Stop the World > Editions

By lauren thoman first published april 1st 2023.

I'll Stop the World

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book review i'll stop the world

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Author Interviews

How the art world excludes you and what you can do about it.

Elizabeth Blair 2018 square

Elizabeth Blair

book review i'll stop the world

In her new book Get the Picture, journalist Bianca Bosker explores why connecting with art sometimes feels harder than it has to be. Above, a visitor takes in paintings at The Royal Academy Summer Exhibition in London in 2010. Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images hide caption

In her new book Get the Picture, journalist Bianca Bosker explores why connecting with art sometimes feels harder than it has to be. Above, a visitor takes in paintings at The Royal Academy Summer Exhibition in London in 2010.

When Bianca Bosker told people in the art world she'd be writing a tell-all about their confounding, exclusive ecosystem, "bad idea," they responded.

"They didn't come right out and threaten my safety or anything," she writes in Get the Picture , "My reputation, well-being, and livelihood as a journalist —that, however, was another story." Judging from the book's recent reviews , she need not worry too much.

Bosker's motivation for writing the book was partly frustration. "I didn't know how to have a meaningful experience of art and that bothered me," she tells me, "But also like I think the art fiends that I got to know, it's not just that they look at art differently. They behave sort of like they've accessed this trapdoor in their brains and I envied that."

Get the Picture by Bianca Bosker

Other journalists might have relied on research and interviews. Bosker went gonzo. She spent five years immersed in the New York art scene, working as a gallery assistant and helping artists in their studios. After getting a license to be a security guard with the state of New York, she got a guard job at the Guggenheim.

Bosker didn't necessarily set out to write a takedown of the art world, though the result is pretty much just that. She writes about the time a performance artist sat on her face. And recounts a conversation with a dealer who said her mere presence (he didn't like her clothes) was "lowering my coolness." It's unvarnished, awkward and eye-opening.

Borderline hostile

"Working at galleries, I became initiated into the way that the art world wields strategic snobbery to keep people out. And I think it's deliberate and I think it's unnecessary," says Bosker.

Take the wall texts you often see at art museums. While they might be well-intentioned, Bosker believes they're part of an over-emphasis on context .

"For the last 100 years or so, we've been told that what really matters about an artwork is the idea behind it." Bosker says that "art connoisseurs" were very interested in "where an artist went to school, who owns her work, what gallery had shown it, who he slept with" and was surprised by "how little [time they] actually spent discussing the work itself."

Of those wall labels, "I thought they were annoying, like borderline hostile ... they just drove me crazy."

At a recent visit to the Guggenheim, we saw one that included the phrase:

"...practice explores the liminal spaces of human consciousness..."

Bosker shudders. "If I had a dollar for every time someone in the art world used the word 'liminal,'" she laughs. One artist she worked with told her, "'Reading the wall labels is like you're trying to have a conversation with the artwork, but someone keeps interrupting.'"

As a museum guard, Bosker occasionally took the matter into her own hands.

"I would actually try and stand in front of the wall labels so that people wouldn't just fall back on the approved interpretations. They would challenge themselves and really wrestle with their own eye, which is so strong," she says.

Small galleries deliberately keep out the 'schmoes '

If museums make some people feel unwelcome, Bosker learned that small, contemporary art galleries can be even worse. One that we visited in downtown Manhattan was hard to find. That's typical, Bosker explains.

She says a lot of galleries "deliberately ... hide themselves from the general public ... I worked for someone who referred to general public as 'Joe Schmoes' and I think there are a lot of ways to keep out the schmoes, and where you put your gallery is a big one."

Now, to be fair, those galleries are in the business of selling art.

book review i'll stop the world

Gallery owner Robert Dimin likes that Bianca Bosker is unmasking "our opaque art world" with her new book Get the Picture . DIMIN hide caption

Rob Dimin, another gallery owner Bosker worked for, does not refer to the general public as "schmoes" but he does like that his new gallery is tucked away. It's on the second floor of a building with just a small plaque by the entrance.

Dimin's last gallery was a storefront. "You [were] more likely to get people that had no intention or idea about the art or really interested in the art, just maybe kind of stumbling in," he says, "There [were] moments when we were on the street level that people would come in and just have phone conversations on rainy days because it was an open space."

People walking into a gallery to get out of the rain aren't usually interested in buying art. But Dimin admits that the art world is "opaque" and he's glad Bosker is unmasking it. There are parts of it even he doesn't understand.

"Even as an art dealer, it sometimes is confusing," he says, "Like, why is X, Y and Z artists getting acquired by every museum and having these museum shows? What is challenging for a person like me who's been in this business for 10 years, I can only imagine a person not within the industry having more challenges."

How to have a meaningful experience with art

Intentionally confusing, elitist, cloistered. While Bosker's new book likens the art world to a "country club," she says her feelings about art itself haven't been diminished.

"Seeing artists in their studios agonize over the correct color blue, over ... the physics of making something stick, lay and stay, really convinced me that everything we need to have a meaningful experience with art is right in front of us," says Bosker.

book review i'll stop the world

Bianca Bosker takes a close look at a work by Julianne Swartz at the gallery Bienvenu Steinberg & J in New York. Bosker says it's OK to "walk around a sculpture ... just don't touch it." Elizabeth Blair/NPR hide caption

Bianca Bosker takes a close look at a work by Julianne Swartz at the gallery Bienvenu Steinberg & J in New York. Bosker says it's OK to "walk around a sculpture ... just don't touch it."

Here are a few tips she has for readers looking to evade the snobbery:

"My philosophy had always been when I went to a museum ... a scorched earth approach to viewing. I was like, 'You have to see everything. That is how you get your money's worth.'" Bosker says "museum fatigue" is real and compares it to eating everything at an all you can eat buffet. "No wonder you feel a little ill at the end of it."

"If you find one work and you just spend your entire half hour, hour, hour and a half at that piece, you've done it. And I think that that can be oftentimes an even more meaningful experience."

Find five things

Don't 'get' art? You might be looking at it wrong

Don't 'get' art? You might be looking at it wrong

"An artist that I spent time with encouraged me to, in front of an artwork, challenge yourself to notice five things. And those five things don't have to be grandiose, like: 'This is a commentary on masculinity in the Internet age.' It could just be, you know, like this yellow makes me want to touch it." Taking the time to notice those things will help viewers think about the choices an artist has made, Bosker believes.

"I think being around art ultimately helps us widen and expand our definition of what beauty is. And I think beauty ... is that moment when our mind jumps the curb. It can feel uncomfortable, but it also is something that draws us to it. ... It's something that all of us need more of in our life. And art can be the gateway to finding more of it. It doesn't have to happen with the traditionally beautiful artwork."

Get as close to the source as possible

"What we see when we go to a museum is not necessarily the best that culture has to offer. ... It's the result of many decisions by flawed human beings. And one way to get around that is to widen your horizons. ... Go to see art at art schools, go see art at the gallery in a garage and just kind of go close to the source."

This story was edited for audio and digital by Rose Friedman. The web page was produced by Beth Novey.

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COMMENTS

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    When he wrecks his vehicle one night, he wakes up in the 1980s meeting Rose Yin, who tries to help him solve this coming-of-age mystery. It is intricately written with a lot of teenage drama, underage drinking, and bullying those due to sexual identity, race or groups. I thought the characters were typical teens trying to fit in and belong.

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  23. Lauren Thoman

    I'LL STOP THE WORLD is the first debut published by Mindy's Book Studio, six-time Emmy nominee Mindy Kaling's eponymous imprint with Amazon Publishing. Mindy's Book Studio is a boutique story studio designed to publish emerging and established diverse voices and imagine books from page-to-screen.

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    I'll Stop the World (MP3 CD) Published April 1st 2023 by Mindy's Book Studio. Unabridged, MP3 CD, 13 pages. more details. Want to Read. Rate this book. 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars. per page. Editions for I'll Stop the World: 1662509979 (Hardcover published in 2023), 1662509952 (Kindle Edition published in ...

  27. How the art world excludes you and what you can do about it

    Bosker shudders. "If I had a dollar for every time someone in the art world used the word 'liminal,'" she laughs. One artist she worked with told her, "'Reading the wall labels is like you're ...