Description

The acclaimed author of Ms. Bixby’s Last Day and Posted returns with an unforgettable tale of love and laughter, of fathers and sons, of what family truly means, and of the ways in which we sometimes need to lose something in order to find ourselves. Celebrate dads and Father's Day year-round with this warm and witty novel for tweens.

Rion Kwirk comes from a rather odd family. His mother named him and his sisters after her favorite constellations, and his father makes funky-flavored jellybeans for a living. One sister acts as if she’s always on stage, and the other is a walking dictionary. But no one in the family is more odd than Rion’s grandfather, Papa Kwirk.

He’s the kind of guy who shows up on his motorcycle only on holidays handing out crossbows and stuffed squirrels as presents. Rion has always been fascinated by Papa Kwirk, especially as his son—Rion’s father—is the complete opposite. Where Dad is predictable, nerdy, and reassuringly boring, Papa Kwirk is mysterious, dangerous, and cool.

Which is why, when Rion and his family learn of Papa Kwirk’s death and pile into the car to attend his funeral and pay their respects, Rion can’t help but feel that that’s not the end of his story. That there’s so much more to Papa Kwirk to discover.

He doesn’t know how right he is.


  • A Hilarious and Heartfelt Adventure: When a singing clown delivers the worst possible news, Rion Kwirk discovers his grandfather’s story is far from over.
  • An Unforgettable Scavenger Hunt: Papa Kwirk is gone, but he’s left behind a trail of bizarre clues that will lead his family to the truth—and to each other.
  • Generations of Family Secrets: Rion always saw his dad as nerdy and predictable. Now he’ll uncover the complicated history between the father he has and the grandfather he’s lost.
  • Dealing with Loss, Finding Yourself: A poignant and funny story about grief, love, and laughter that proves sometimes you have to lose something to find out who you really are.

About the author(s)

John David Anderson is the author of more than a dozen acclaimed and beloved books for kids, including the New York Times Notable Book Ms. Bixby’s Last DayPostedGrantedOne Last ShotStowawayThe Greatest Kid in the World, Keep It Like a Secret, and many more. A dedicated root beer connoisseur and chocolate fiend, he lives with his wonderful wife, two frawesome kids, and a pair of mischievous kitties in Indianapolis, Indiana. You can visit him online at johndavidanderson.org.

Reviews

“Humor, plot twists, and quirky characters abound in this earnest middle grade tale of self-discovery.” - School Library Journal

“Eccentric yet believable characters and Rion’s perceptive narration prevent Anderson’s unpredictable tale from feeling overwrought as the relationships between three generations of fathers and sons are rewritten anew.” - Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“Readers will be happily swept along by Rion’s first-person narration, which is often amusing, sometimes bemused, and occasionally even tender as he shows how his family was unwittingly drawn together by their shared experience. The author of Ms. Bixby’s Last Day (2016), Posted (2017), and Granted (2018), Anderson offers another original novel written with wit and compassion.” - ALA Booklist

“A smoothly written family adventure that evokes both Willy Wonka and The Wonder Years.” - Kirkus Reviews

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