The Music of What Happens

The Music of What Happens

Authors

Bill Konigsberg

Publisher

Arthur A. Levine Books

Publication Year

2019

ISBN

9781338215502

Pages

352 pages

Genre

realism

Format

novel

Item Type

Fiction

Annotation

It is summer in Phoenix, and seventeen-year-old Maximo offers to help Jordan, a fellow student in high school, with the food truck that belonged to Jordan's deceased father, and which may be the only thing standing between homelessness for Jordan and his mom; the boys are strongly attracted to each other, but as their romance develops it is threatened by the secrets they are hiding--and by the racism and homophobia of those around them.

Grade Level

9-12

Lexile Measure

HL670L

Diversity Topics

Family Relationships; Racial Diversity; LGBTQ (Gender and Sexuality); Disability and Health; Single Parent; Family member death; Divorce; Biracial; Interracial; Gay/Lesbian; Addiction; single mother; death of a father; divorced parents; biracial teenager; interracial relationship; gay; gay teenager; same-sex relationship; gambling addiction; parent with an addiction

Main Character

male teenagers

Race/Ethnicities

Latinx (Mexican) / White

Family Formation

single mother

LGBTQ+

gay males

Awards

Booklist Book Review Stars, 2018

Keywords

food truck; cooking; Phoenix, Arizona; summer; sexual assault; masculinity; secrets; summer job; baseball

Diversity Impact

direct

The Music of What Happens

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