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The Agony of Bun O'Keefe

By Heather Smith

By Heather Smith

By Heather Smith

By Heather Smith

By Heather Smith

By Heather Smith

By Heather Smith
Read by Amanda Arcuri

By Heather Smith
Read by Amanda Arcuri

Best Seller
Paperback $9.99

Apr 02, 2019 | ISBN 9780143198673 | Young Adult

Hardcover $16.99

Sep 05, 2017 | ISBN 9780143198659 | Young Adult

Ebook $9.99

Sep 05, 2017 | ISBN 9780143198666 | Young Adult

Audiobook Download $16.99

Oct 24, 2017 | 237 Minutes | Young Adult

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    The Agony of Bun O'Keefe by Heather Smith
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    Apr 02, 2019 | ISBN 9780143198673

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      Apr 02, 2019 | ISBN 9780143198673 | Young Adult

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    • Hardcover $16.99

      Sep 05, 2017 | ISBN 9780143198659 | Young Adult

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      Sep 05, 2017 | ISBN 9780143198666 | Young Adult

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      Oct 24, 2017 | ISBN 9780735264588 | Young Adult

      237 Minutes

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    About The Agony of Bun O’Keefe

    Little Miss Sunshine meets Room in this quirky, heartwarming story of friendship, loyalty and discovery.

    It’s Newfoundland, 1986. Fourteen-year-old Bun O’Keefe has lived a solitary life in an unsafe, unsanitary house. Her mother is a compulsive hoarder, and Bun has had little contact with the outside world. What she’s learned about life comes from the random books and old VHS tapes that she finds in the boxes and bags her mother brings home. Bun and her mother rarely talk, so when Bun’s mother tells Bun to leave one day, she does. Hitchhiking out of town, Bun ends up on the streets of St. John’s, Newfoundland. Fortunately, the first person she meets is Busker Boy, a street musician who senses her naivety and takes her in. Together they live in a house with an eclectic cast of characters: Chef, a hotel dishwasher with culinary dreams; Cher, a drag queen with a tragic past; Big Eyes, a Catholic school girl desperately trying to reinvent herself; and The Landlord, a man who Bun is told to avoid at all cost. Through her experiences with her new roommates, and their sometimes tragic revelations, Bun learns that the world extends beyond the walls of her mother’s house and discovers the joy of being part of a new family — a family of friends who care.

    About The Agony of Bun O’Keefe

    Little Miss Sunshine meets Room in this quirky, heartwarming story of friendship, loyalty and discovery.

    It’s Newfoundland, 1986. Fourteen-year-old Bun O’Keefe has lived a solitary life in an unsafe, unsanitary house. Her mother is a compulsive hoarder, and Bun has had little contact with the outside world. What she’s learned about life comes from the random books and old VHS tapes that she finds in the boxes and bags her mother brings home. Bun and her mother rarely talk, so when Bun’s mother tells Bun to leave one day, she does. Hitchhiking out of town, Bun ends up on the streets of St. John’s, Newfoundland. Fortunately, the first person she meets is Busker Boy, a street musician who senses her naivety and takes her in. Together they live in a house with an eclectic cast of characters: Chef, a hotel dishwasher with culinary dreams; Cher, a drag queen with a tragic past; Big Eyes, a Catholic school girl desperately trying to reinvent herself; and The Landlord, a man who Bun is told to avoid at all cost. Through her experiences with her new roommates, and their sometimes tragic revelations, Bun learns that the world extends beyond the walls of her mother’s house and discovers the joy of being part of a new family — a family of friends who care.

    About The Agony of Bun O’Keefe

    Little Miss Sunshine meets Room in this quirky, heartwarming story of friendship, loyalty and discovery.

    It’s Newfoundland, 1986. Fourteen-year-old Bun O’Keefe has lived a solitary life in an unsafe, unsanitary house. Her mother is a compulsive hoarder, and Bun has had little contact with the outside world. What she’s learned about life comes from the random books and old VHS tapes that she finds in the boxes and bags her mother brings home. Bun and her mother rarely talk, so when Bun’s mother tells Bun to leave one day, she does. Hitchhiking out of town, Bun ends up on the streets of St. John’s, Newfoundland. Fortunately, the first person she meets is Busker Boy, a street musician who senses her naivety and takes her in. Together they live in a house with an eclectic cast of characters: Chef, a hotel dishwasher with culinary dreams; Cher, a drag queen with a tragic past; Big Eyes, a Catholic school girl desperately trying to reinvent herself; and The Landlord, a man who Bun is told to avoid at all cost. Through her experiences with her new roommates, and their sometimes tragic revelations, Bun learns that the world extends beyond the walls of her mother’s house and discovers the joy of being part of a new family — a family of friends who care.

    About The Agony of Bun O’Keefe

    Little Miss Sunshine meets Room in this quirky, heartwarming story of friendship, loyalty and discovery.

    It’s Newfoundland, 1986. Fourteen-year-old Bun O’Keefe has lived a solitary life in an unsafe, unsanitary house. Her mother is a compulsive hoarder, and Bun has had little contact with the outside world. What she’s learned about life comes from the random books and old VHS tapes that she finds in the boxes and bags her mother brings home. Bun and her mother rarely talk, so when Bun’s mother tells Bun to leave one day, she does. Hitchhiking out of town, Bun ends up on the streets of St. John’s, Newfoundland. Fortunately, the first person she meets is Busker Boy, a street musician who senses her naivety and takes her in. Together they live in a house with an eclectic cast of characters: Chef, a hotel dishwasher with culinary dreams; Cher, a drag queen with a tragic past; Big Eyes, a Catholic school girl desperately trying to reinvent herself; and The Landlord, a man who Bun is told to avoid at all cost. Through her experiences with her new roommates, and their sometimes tragic revelations, Bun learns that the world extends beyond the walls of her mother’s house and discovers the joy of being part of a new family — a family of friends who care.

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    About Heather Smith

    HEATHER SMITH is originally from Newfoundland, and now lives in Waterloo, Ontario, with her husband and three children. Her east coast roots inspire much of her writing. Her novel, The Agony of Bun O’Keefe, won the Ontario Library Association’s White… More about Heather Smith

    About Heather Smith

    HEATHER SMITH is originally from Newfoundland, and now lives in Waterloo, Ontario, with her husband and three children. Her east coast roots inspire much of her writing. Her novel, The Agony of Bun O’Keefe, won the Ontario Library Association’s White… More about Heather Smith

    About Heather Smith

    HEATHER SMITH is originally from Newfoundland, and now lives in Waterloo, Ontario, with her husband and three children. Her east coast roots inspire much of her writing. Her novel, The Agony of Bun O’Keefe, won the Ontario Library Association’s White… More about Heather Smith

    About Heather Smith

    HEATHER SMITH is originally from Newfoundland, and now lives in Waterloo, Ontario, with her husband and three children. Her east coast roots inspire much of her writing. Her novel, The Agony of Bun O’Keefe, won the Ontario Library Association’s White… More about Heather Smith

    Product Details

    Category: Teen & Young Adult Fiction | Teen & Young Adult Social Issues

    Paperback | $9.99
    Published by Penguin Teen Canada
    Apr 02, 2019 | 224 Pages | 5-1/2 x 8-1/4 | Young Adult | ISBN 9780143198673

    Category: Teen & Young Adult Fiction | Teen & Young Adult Social Issues

    Hardcover | $16.99
    Published by Penguin Teen Canada
    Sep 05, 2017 | 224 Pages | 5-1/2 x 8-1/4 | Young Adult | ISBN 9780143198659

    Category: Teen & Young Adult Fiction | Teen & Young Adult Social Issues

    Ebook | $9.99
    Published by Penguin Teen Canada
    Sep 05, 2017 | 256 Pages | Young Adult | ISBN 9780143198666

    Category: Teen & Young Adult Fiction | Teen & Young Adult Social Issues | Audiobooks

    Audiobook Download | $16.99
    Published by Penguin Teen Canada
    Oct 24, 2017 | 237 Minutes | Young Adult | ISBN 9780735264588
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    Praise

    A Kirkus Reviews Best Teen Book of 2017
    One of the Globe and Mail‘s 100 Best Books of 2017
    One of Bank Street’s Best Children’s Books of The Year (2017)
    One of Toronto Public Library’s Great Reads for Youth 2018
    One of CCBC’S Best Books for Kids & Teens (2018)
    Selection – OLA Forest Teen Committee’s 2018 Summer Reading List
    One of CanLit for Little Canadians’ must-read Canadian YA books

    “There’s an abundance of humour both subtle and overt, and a shattering of stereotypes and tropes. . . . This is a book that grabs readers by the heart and the head.” —Starred Review, Quill & Quire

    “Although Bun is 14, she possesses the endearing naiveté and honesty of a child, but her first-person narration isn’t sappy or immature. . . . Bun O’Keefe will settle comfortably at home in readers’ hearts.” –Starred Review, Kirkus Reviews

    “Heather Smith’s second novel burns with nostalgia, wonder and sadness… a quietly profound, starkly Canadian account of being unwanted by family and society.” —Globe and Mail

    “Teens will truly dive into Bun’s mind and her surroundings through her understanding of the world… A nuanced, well-done novel about tough topics that deserves a place in most collections.” —School Library Journal

    “Smith’s strength is her attention to setting details and character development. . . . Recommended.” —CM: Canadian Review of Materials

    Awards

    Alcuin Society Awards for Excellence in Book Design – Prose Fiction WINNER 2017

    Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children’s Book Awards WINNER 2018

    White Pine Award WINNER 2019

    USBBY-CBC Outstanding International Trade Book SELECTION 2018

    Amy Mathers Teen Book Award SHORTLIST 2018

    Geoffrey Bilson Award for Historical Fiction for Young People SHORTLIST 2018

    Kirkus Reviews Best Teen Book AWARD 2017

    YALSA Best Books for Young Adults AWARD 2019

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