Let's say: hilarious and has me grinning.
Okay.
Wonderful and fun and serious. All sorts of 'wow' in a single package.

Cute. Now that's the word I never thought I'd use to describe a book. Ever.
But there you have it. Totally cute.

Oh the worlds we would go if Payton and Jac happened to be my friends... Sanity being optional, of course =D ( )

Fifteen-year-old Payton Gritas isn't talking to her family. Her dad has MS, multiple sclerosis, and while her parents felt it appropriate to tell her years older brothers, they all kept it from her. Until she found out by accident.

Hence her not talking to them.

Now she's been sent to the school guidance counselor, Ms Callahan, so that she will talk to someone and find
a way to deal with things.

Ms Callahan has an idea that Payton's parents probably never thought of when they called, though: a Focus Object. Payton's supposed to find something to focus her emotions on that will help her cope with her family's secret and her father's MS.

Thing is, it's supposed to be an inanimate object and Payton's picked Sean Griswold's head.

Griswold-Gritas. Alphabetically they're been seated together since elementary school so Payton's had a lot of time to stare at Sean Griswold's head.

Except, once she starts focusing on--or stalking Sean---and his head, she realizes she doesn't actually know very much about Sean, at all.

Soon, Sean's working his way into Payton's closely guarded life. And she's going to have to look at herself, to really deal with her feeling on her father's MS.



Sean Griswold's Head is what you should want every book you pick up to be. It's that amazingly perfect.

On one page, it has you grinning, a few pages later it squeezes your heart, and then, then it somehow does both at the same time. Very, very few books--if any, really--are able to do the touching sweet moments as well as the funny ones.

Sean Griswold's Head is somehow, also, a pitch-perfect story of first love while also telling of a story coping with a member who has multiple sclerosis. While each element is separate, they're also not. The love story is stronger because Payton's dealing with her family situation is part of it and her family and friends either directly or indirectly help her romance along.
I don't care if you for whatever reason don't like the summary of this book (either mine or the publishers) or are some reason unsure of it, please do read it!! I adore it.


10/10

(review copy sent thanks to Kate at Bloomsbury)

A good read to show how one teen deals with a family issue and how she comes to terms with it. ( )

This was a fast, fun read with some serious stuff too. We've got a cute budding romance, a teen dealing with her father getting a serious and possibly debilitating disease (MS), all with humor. I don't think I liked this one as much as Leavitt's most recent book, Going Vintage, but it was still a nice way to end my 2013 reading. ( )

In Sean Griswold’s Head we meet fifteen-year-old Payton Gritas, an over-achieving and obsessively organized high school student. Her world comes crashing down when she finds out her dad has MS, and what’s even worse is her family has kept his diagnosis a secret for months. She takes out her hurt feelings and fear on those she loves most: her parents. The school guidance counselor wants to help. She assigns Payton a focus object project to focus her energy on something not related to her dad’s MS. Payton decides classmate Sean Griswold’s head will be her focus object. Due to an alphabetical seating chart Payton has sat behind Sean since third grade. Payton’s best friend Jac gets in the act and encourages her to do more sleuthing to study more than just the back of his head. Once she starts writing about him, she begins to take notice of the nice guy who has been under her nose this whole time. They share more in common than she could have ever imagined. What happens when her school project turns into something more?

This is a really sweet, heart-warming book. I had a feeling I would love it when I read the premise and I wasn’t disappointed. The book explores realistic issues readers will relate to such as managing relationships, coping skills and school and home challenges. The main character Payton is charming in her imperfection. It’s refreshing to have an athletic, quirky and high achieving main character. It’s interesting to read how she handles life’s obstacles after having such an organized life.

Jac is Payton’s over-bearing but well-meaning best friend. She’s boy crazy and has a tendency to meddle, especially where Sean is concerned. Sean Griswold is the perfect guy for Payton. He’s smart, considerate, involved with charities, and he’s training for a triathlon. He’s even as obsessed with the show Seinfeld as Payton is. He’s friendly with Grady the Goth who has had very bizarre interactions with Payton in the halls. Payton’s parents and brothers also play prominent roles in the book. Payton’s response to her family crisis is frustrating yet realistic and it is interesting to see their family dynamic as they try to address their issues. All of the characters are multi-layered and fascinating in their roles.

Sean Griswold’s Head is a real treat and standout in the young adult contemporary genre. It’s a sweet, funny and sharply written book that will tug at your heartstrings. Looking forward to reading more books by Lindsey Leavitt. ( )