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Mohrbooks Literary Agency
Sebastian Ritscher
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English
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ALL WE CAN DO IS WAIT

Richard Lawson

An extraordinary and life-affirming debut novel that will make your heart stop and time stand.
In the hours after a bridge collapse rocks their city, a group of Boston teenagers meet in the waiting room of Massachusetts General Hospital.

Siblings Jason and Alexa have already experienced enough grief for a lifetime, so in this moment of confusion and despair, Alexa hopes that she can look to her brother for support. But a secret Jason has been keeping from his sister threatens to tear the siblings apart... right when they need each other most.

Scott is waiting to hear about his girlfriend, Aimee, who was on a bus with her theater group when the bridge went down. Their relationship has been rocky, but Scott knows that if he can just see Aimee one more time, if she can just make it through this ordeal and he can tell her he loves her, everything will be all right.

And then there's Skyler, whose sister Kate--the sister who is more like a mother, the sister who is basically Skyler's everything--was crossing the bridge when it collapsed. As the minutes tick by without a word from the hospital staff, Skyler is left to wonder how she can possibly move through life without the one person who makes her feel strong when she's at her weakest.

In his riveting, achingly beautiful debut, Richard Lawson guides readers through an emotional and life-changing night as these teens are forced to face the reality of their pasts--and the prospect of very different futures.

AN AUTHOR WITH A PLATFORM: Though this is Richard Lawson's debut novel, he already has a built-in fanbase from his online writing at Gawker, The Atlantic Wire, and Vanity Fair, as well as his personal Tumblr. Richard is also a Twitter favorite, with a following of almost 50k and growing!

LITERARY GEM: An emotional, literary coming-of-age story filled with heartbreak and hope, All We Can Do Is Wait has all the makings of a YA classic like The Perks of Being a Wallflower, When Things Come Back, and I'll Give You the Sun.

POIGNANT COMING-OUT NARRATIVE: Drawing from his own experiences as a gay teen growing up in Boston, Richard beautifully captures the vulnerability of needing acceptance from the ones you love most.

Richard Lawson is the film critic for Vanity Fair and a co-host of V.F.'s Little Gold Menpodcast. He has written for The Guardian, The Atlantic Wire, Gawker, and Outmagazine, and has contributed to the Dinner Party Download radio show. Though currently living in New York City, Richard was born and raised in Boston.
Available products
Book

Published 2018-02-06 by Razorbill

Book

Published 2018-02-06 by Razorbill

Comments

All We Can Do Is Wait sparkles with wit and tenderness as it takes us on a mysterious and unexpected journey to the place where grief and longing meet. Lawson's characters are heartbreakingly human—sharp edges and all—and readers new to his work are sure to come away as fans

Tender-hearted, clear-eyed, full of the rage and wonder of youth, this novel does the dazzling work of bridging that delicate suspense between adolescence and adulthood. You will be moved beyond measure.

Vanity Fair will feature ALL WE CAN DO IS WAIT in their Hollywood issue, on stands in early February!

ALL WE CAN DO IS WAIT was named to School Library Journal 2018 Popular Picks list; shared on Penguin Classroom social.

Chapters shift among Lawson's complex and carefully drawn characters, offering distinct points of view and providing aching insight into the personal pain that colors their perspectives.... a gripping and emotionally invigorating story.

A gorgeous, elegantly spare story about the genealogy of love and connection in a moment of crisis. Timely and stirring.

A remarkable story that explores growing up through the lens of mortality...Young readers looking for a change of pace will be rewarded by this quiet yet powerful meditation on life and death.

Publishers Weekly will feature a Q&A with authors Richard Lawson and Mary H.K. Choi (Emergency Contact; S&S) in today's issue of PW Children's Bookshelf.

A profound and empathic story about love, loss, and growing up, All We Can Do Is Wait captures both the magic and uncertainty of youth in all its beautiful and triumphant sadness. I wish I'd had it when I was young.

ALL WE CAN DO IS WAIT will be included in the February/March issue of Justine Magazine.

ALL WE CAN DO IS WAIT will be included in the "Best Books to Read in February" online feature on EW.com on February 1st.

Author Richard Lawson appeared as a guest on the Earwolf podcast Throwing Shade on January 18th! Read more...