Optimists Die First

"Susin Nielsen has produced a richly comic story featuring a cast of mismatched, engaging characters" -- Marilyn Brocklehurst * Guardian, The Best New Children's Books supplement *
"Entertaining but also poignant" -- Claire Hennessy * Irish Times *
"One of the most talented teen writers working today" * BookTrust *
"Grief and guilt permeate Nielsen's empathic and deeply moving story, balanced by sharply funny narration and dialogue." * Publishers Weekly, starred review *
"Nielsen writes with sensitivity, empathy, and humour" * Kirkus, starred review *
"The novel's greatest strength is its handling of the characters' very real burdens with sympathy, wit, and not an ounce of melodrama. Nielsen excels at depicting troubled, clever teenagers" * Starred review, School Library Journal *
"Optimists Die First is both funny and heartbreaking. Fans of Rainbow Rowell's Eleanor And Park will love it." * Red Magazine Online *
"Nielsen has such a gift for creating authentic teenagers... Infused with offbeat humour, this is a book with a great voice and a big, big heart" -- Fiona Noble * The Bookseller *
"A contemporary story written with compassion, empathy and wit" * Best New Children's Books Guide, produced by the Publishers' Association and published in the Guardian 2018 *
"Readers will be gripped by Petula's story and the way she tells it; Nielsen gives her a totally authentic teen voice, loaded with cynicism, sarcasm, humour and flashes of hope." -- Andrea Reece * Lovereading *