The Thing About Jellyfish

The Thing About Jellyfish

By Ali Benjamin

50 ratings 70 reviews 29 followers
Interest LevelReading LevelReading A-ZATOSWord Count
Grades 4 - 8Grades 3 - 8Y546150
This stunning debut novel about grief and wonder was an instant New York Times bestseller and captured widespread critical acclaim, including selection as a 2015 National Book Award finalist! Oddlot Entertainment has acquired the screen rights to The Thing About Jellyfish, with Gigi Pritzker set to produce with Bruna Papandrea and Reese Witherspoon.

After her best friend dies in a drowning accident, Suzy is convinced that the true cause of the tragedy must have been a rare jellyfish sting-things don't just happen for no reason. Retreating into a silent world of imagination, she crafts a plan to prove her theory--even if it means traveling the globe, alone. Suzy's achingly heartfelt journey explores life, death, the astonishing wonder of the universe...and the potential for love and hope right next door.
Publisher: Macmillan
ISBN-13: 9781509821341
ISBN-10: 1509821341
Published on 10/22/2015
Binding: Hardcover

Book Reviews (71)

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"Shoot Me if I ever become like that." is what Franny said. Suzy and Franny are best friends. Then in 6th grade Franny changes, she starts worrying about her hair, clothes, and what other people think about her. She also starts hanging out with popular (and pretty) Audrey. Suzy decides to send Franny the signal they had talked about. One that couldn't be missed. But then it all goes horribly wrong. The last time Suzy ever saw Franny was her crying carrying plastic bags down the hall. All because of her.

im a cat im a cat

MY FAVORITE BOOK OF ALL TIME!! Read this book. It's sad but also amazing. All my friends I've recommended it to have loved it, too. Honestly, even if you don't like how it sounds, still give it a try. This book has led me to other books that I love as well. 1.9 billion out of five stars

This book was so beautiful. Anyone know what I mean? :P

bookworm15 bookworm15

I am really excited to read this for summer reading. The story seems like a different kind of topic

bookworm15 bookworm15

seems really cool. I got this out of the library because its on my summer reading list.

This book is written with honest emotions and is truly one of the most beautiful and heartbreaking books I have ever read! While Suzy goes through the hardship of realizing that her best friend is dead, she is determined to know the cause of her death. She goes to the full extent, barely ever thinking about giving up until she realizes that no matter how hard she tries, it won't bring her friend back from death. I read this book about four months ago but remember everything in it because of how amazing it was. I, with no doubt, recommend this to anyone who is ready to challenge their emotions to something depressing and a little tense.

Cool! My sister has that book and it seemed boring but now I want to read it! Thanks grapefruit for the description!

Since the death of her best friend, a girl wonders about the possibilities of a fatal jellyfish attack. She searches for a jelly expert until the result shows that her bestie was killed by a wave and not a jelly. The writing is creative and interesting, but it is all rather unclear about why the main character has these thoughts. It had all the potential, but I guess it could use more explanation--20 extra pages or so.

I loved this book!! It was really very well written and a must read for anyone!

This book was AWESOME I've read it two times and I couldn't get ENOUGH of it! The story is about a girl named Suzy Swanson, who really has a natural love for animals, science, and math. Her best friend, Franny, loved learning new things with Suzy until they reached middle school age. Franny decides she wants to hang out with girlier girls, and wants nothing to do with Suzy anymore unless she tries to be a "normal girl" like her. Suzy is insulted by this because she thought Franny was her friend, so she plans what she calls a "sign" to wake her friend up before she becomes like the other popular girls. Unfortunately, this revenge does not go over well and when Franny dies in a tragic accident a few days later Suzy blames herself and stops talking out loud. She then gets a idea of how her friend died, and decides she has to prove it. Very well written book with encouraging life lessons. LOVED IT.

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