I read and write young adult fiction for the same reason people go to high school reunions — there’s something about figuring out how to be a person that begs us to return. Fiction is a natural place to explore those beautiful themes.
The first time we loved, lost, were heartbroken, broke hearts, made mistakes, had success, won trophies, came in last, found freedom, felt contained by adults, broke rules, were punished, got away with something, cared about people, cared about the world, etc. The first time. That’s the key. You don’t have to read young adult to know that formative experiences are vital understanding humanity on the whole and self-identity. We don’t ask people about the third or fourth time they fell in love. We ask them about the first time so we’ll understand their starting point. If every person is a road map with a marked journey; we want to put a pin in the place they began. Young adult fiction is that pin.
― Court Stevens, Interview, Musings, Parnassus Books
What booksellers are saying about Last Girl Breathing
- am so excited that Court Stevens is back with another small town thriller! Her exploration of family, grief, and truth, all with underlying simmering suspense, is the hallmark of a Stevens novel, and Last Girl Breathing has it in spades. If you loved The June Boys and We Were Kings, don’t miss Court’s newest!
― Sarah Arnold, Parnassus Books in Nashville, TN | Buy from Parnassus
- Once again, Court Stevens has delivered an enthralling thriller. On its surface Last Girl Breathing is a murder mystery, but – as is often the case with Stevens’ novels – the story goes much deeper. This is a book about trauma and grief and family – about the wounds that shape us and the people who help us bear them. All of these themes are masterfully rooted in a sense of place. Stevens deftly paints her Kentucky setting, giving the town and its people a southern vibrancy and authenticity that never once slips into the realm of stereotype.
― Kate Snyder from Plaid Elephant in Danville, KY | Buy from Plaid Elephant Books
About Court Stevens
Court Stevens grew up among rivers, cornfields, churches, and gossip in the small-town South. She is a former adjunct professor, youth minister, and Olympic torchbearer. These days she writes coming-of-truth fiction and is the director of Warren County Public Library in Kentucky. She has a pet whale named Herman, a bandsaw named Rex, and several novels with her name on the spine: The June Boys, Faking Normal, The Lies About Truth, the e-novella The Blue-Haired Boy, Dress Codes for Small Towns, and Four Three Two One. Find Court online at CourtneyCStevens.com; Instagram: @quartland; Facebook: @CourtneyCStevens; Twitter: @quartland.
