Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by: Jesse Andrews

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by: Jesse Andrews
Publisher: Amulet Books
Publication Date: March 1, 2012
Format: Hardcover (from Library)
Genre: Humor, Realistic, Contemporary
Page Count: 295
Cover Rating: 6/10
Author Website: Jesse Andrews
Buy the Book: Amazon, Barnes and Noble

Summary from Goodreads:

Greg Gaines is the last master of high school espionage, able to disappear at will into any social environment. He has only one friend, Earl, and together they spend their time making movies, their own incomprehensible versions of Coppola and Herzog cult classics.
Until Greg’s mother forces him to rekindle his childhood friendship with Rachel.
Rachel has been diagnosed with leukemia—-cue extreme adolescent awkwardness—-but a parental mandate has been issued and must be obeyed. When Rachel stops treatment, Greg and Earl decide the thing to do is to make a film for her, which turns into the Worst Film Ever Made and becomes a turning point in each of their lives.
And all at once Greg must abandon invisibility and stand in the spotlight.

My Review:

Jesse Andrews weaves together a story filled with humor, coping, high school, being a teenager, etc. in Me and Earl and the Dying Girl. It is a cleverly quirky book. This is not one of those books about someone who gets cancer and it’s just depressing. Although it does have it’s moments. But for the most part, it is a funny and honest book filled with truth and comedy.

Greg S. Gaines is the narrator of this tale. He is a senior high school student. He is purposefully invisible and has devised a system where he doesn’t belong anywhere and yet belongs everywhere in cliques at his school. He has an irritating mother, a strange father, and an aggressive cat. In the book, he reminisces about many embarrassing childhood experiences, partly to introduce his purpose for telling his story. We really get a good look at his life and what he feels in Me and Earl and the Dying Girl.

When a girl he sort of dated when he was younger is diagnosed with Leukemia, Greg is swiftly instructed by his demanding mother to become Rachel’s friend again. Greg isn’t thrilled about this. In fact, he’d rather not. When he visits Rachel again after some awkward phone conversations, he immediately starts cracking jokes. I love this about Greg. He can make a joke about almost anything, especially with Rachel. She snort-laughs at his jokes and they have more of a friendship than I think Greg ever notices.

Earl is Greg’s friend/co-worker. He lives with various siblings and half-siblings with a mother who barely shows her face. He seems to be what a lot of people would say is a “bad influence” on Greg, but I think just the opposite. While Earl swears a lot and is always getting into fights with his brothers, he is remarkably compassionate about Rachel.

Greg is constantly confused about how he feels about Rachel and life and everything. He frequently wants to punch himself in the face throughout the book. He made me laugh uncontrollably at times! While some of the things he does and says are simply hilarious, he truthfully tells the story of him and Earl and Rachel. They all kind of form an inexplicable bond throughout the story. Rachel is the only fan of Greg and Earl’s films and Greg is always making her laugh loudly.

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl is a book that I would definitely recommend. Especially if you want a good laugh! There is a good amount of profanity in it, for those of you who don’t read books with profanity.

Official Rating:

Four Un-Birthday Cakes!