#1 New York Times Young Adult Bestseller

#1 New York Times Young Adult Bestseller - This Is Where It Ends!

9/7/2016

We are beyond excited to celebrate that This Is Where It Ends, after 24 weeks on the bestseller list, is now the #1 NEW YORK TIMES young adult hardcover bestseller!

The success of This Is Where It Ends is really kind of remarkable considering that the Marieke is Dutch, English is her second language, and she’s written a story about a high school shooting in an Alabama small town.

Nijkamp’s conversation with a friend about gun safety and school violence left her with so many questions that a story began to form in the back of her mind, and the voices of characters who wanted to tell their story. As a writer, this was something she had never quite experienced before.

“At first it felt incredibly intimating, and I felt completely unequipped to talk about it," says Nijkamp. "But I started working on the book because I was feeling confused and baffled by how often these situations happen and how horrendous they are. I wanted to explore that and find a way to better understand.”

And that’s what makes This Is Where It Ends special. Marieke captures the minds of teens experiencing a horrific situation, and has created a safe space in which teens and adults can discuss this extremely difficult subject that is unfortunately so much a part of their lives now. Marieke has met with over 25 teen book clubs over the past several months. We heard from one teacher that the book went through an entire group of students in four days, and from a librarian who, after having a number of students read it, had a line outside her office the next morning – they just had to talk about the book.

This is an important moment for young adult literature. It isn't every day that a young adult with queer girl main characters tops the New York Times list. It's been an incredible journey for Marieke and her debut novel, and we look forward to seeing how many more lives this amazing book touches. Thank you to all of you who made this possible.