Peter Bognanni

The Short of It:

Brilliant, beautifully written and touching in a way that surprised me.

The Rest of It:

After losing both parents in an accident, sixteen-year-old Sebastian Prendergast lives with his eccentric grandmother Nana in a geodesic dome. Nana, who studied with the infamous R. Buckminster Fuller (architect, philosopher and futurist), continues to share his teachings by conducting tours of their very unique home.

Most people visiting Iowa come for other reasons, but every once in awhile show more they have a visitor or two, and that’s enough to keep Nana happy. Sebastian spends his days polishing the dome and as he’s gazing down upon the town below, it occurs to him that he hasn’t seen much of it, or the rest of the world for that matter. You see, the dome acts as a barrier to all things. It protects him, yet it also imprisons him. In his sensible shoes and conservative outdated clothing, Sebastian finds pleasure in simple things, but he secretly desires more. When his Nana falls ill, he meets a family that helps him realize how special he really is.

This is a wonderful story and includes the most interesting cast of characters I’ve encountered in a long time. They are terrifically flawed. I seriously loved them all, which I almost never say. Bognanni manages to make them vulnerable in beautiful, subtle ways. The story is funny and sad and touching without being overly worked. The transitions were effortless, or seemed so anyway.

I adored this book and this is Bognanni’s first novel! It blows my mind. You know that feeling you get after reading a page or two of a new book? The feeling where you just know that it’s going to be great? I had that feeling throughout the book and the ending did not disappoint. There is so much more to say, but it would be better to experience it on your own. show less

As the author writes, this book is about "...a seventeen-year-old guy from Minnesota who is maybe in love with his best friend, mourning his dead father, in charge of many dysfunctional humans,…unsure what to do with the rest of his life and pouring his remaining energies into saving a movie theater nobody cares about." Ethan manages a decrepit classic movie theater, the Green Street, that is slated to be demolished. His father was a film professor and he taught Ethan to love movies at the show more Green Street. With his father gone, Ethan has nothing else...until Raina, the girl of his dreams abruptly leaves her Hollywood film set and returns to her hometown. Raina never called when Ethan's dad died and Ethan does not know if they are still friends or if his amorous feelings are mutual.
This Book is Not Yet Rated contains a cast of quirky characters including a foul mouthed octogenarian movie house organ player and a projectionist who has lived in the projection booth for 10 years. Film vocabulary is interspersed between every other chapter. Chapter One is the ‘establishing shot’. The next few chapters reel you in. Ethan's obsession with the Green Street and Raina's uncertainty about her budding Hollywood career are equally absorbing. Their relationship, with its ups and downs adds icing on the cake. The efforts the group takes to save the doomed theater are unique. Bognanni's sophomore novel is quirky and fun and film buffs, especially those loving Steve McQueen, will totally enjoy it. show less

Great coming-of-age story about a boy who lives an isolated and home-schooled existince with his eccentric grandmother in a geodesic dome. One day while the Whitcomb family is touring the geodome, Sebastian's grandmother suffers a stroke and is taken to the hospital. This is the catalyst that pushes Sebastian out into the world, specifically into the Whitcomb family. Janice (the mother) is still reeling from a divorce, and her son Jared is recovering from heart transplant surgery. Jared show more finds Sebastian's upbringing extremely weird, if not cruel, and introduces him to the joys of punk rock. The two become friends and decide to form a punk rock band. The character of Sebastian is amusing, speaking like a scientist much of the time, almost as if he sees the world from an outsider's perspective. Jared is the rebel, full of anger and humiliation at his physical limitations and weakness, but also a very lonely, confused and hurt boy. The friendship between Sebastian and Jared is the heart of the story, as well as Sebastian's growing crush on Jared's older sister. I really liked this story and look forward to more from this author. Recommended to anyone who enjoys quality young adult fiction. show less

This is a strange yet oddly real and touching story that explores coming-of-age in a non-traditional family environment, friendship and familial bonds against all odds.

Through first-person narration, we get to know Sebastian Prendergrast, who was orphaned very young and has since been raised by Nana, his off-beat grandmother who lives in a geodesic dome home in Iowa and is a die-hard adherent to the philosophy of R. Buckminster Fuller. When Nana has a stroke, Sebastian is thrust into the show more world beyond his Geodesic Dome Home where he truly learns the meaning of friendship when he meets Jared Whitcomb, a teenage heart transplant recipient. Together, the two social outcasts learn to face both their present and their future through, of all things, their own punk rock band!

This is truly a unique story that is wonderfully weird, funny, bittersweet and uplifting…a great debut novel! show less