The Gospel According to Larry (The Larry Series) - Hardcover

Tashjian, Janet

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0805063781 ISBN 13: 9780805063783

Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR), 2001

Synopsis

After creating a controversial and hugely popular website, teenager Josh Swensen becomes trapped inside his brilliant creation and must find a way to remain anonymous.

I am lying on my bed doing my homework in Greek and Latin roots for Advanced English. 'Ped' for foot, 'homo' for man, 'nym' for name. I sit with the dictionary in front of me, coming up with as many words as I can to complete the assignment. Pedestrian, homicide, pseudonym . . . I have more than thirty of them. By accident -- that's always how these life-changing things happen -- I connect two halves that don't seem like a word until I look it up. 'Pseudo', false; and 'cide,' to kill = pseudocide. To pretend to kill (yourself).

I stare at the word for a good long time. Homicide, suicide, genocide: these are words you can find in the newspaper every day. But pseudocide . . . now here was something different. My mind wanders from my homework to the blue cotton threads of my bedspread. Pseudocide. A way to start again as someone completely new, a way to burn the old self and try on a new one.

Josh Swensen isn't your average teenager - when he observes America, he sees a powerhouse of consumerism and waste. He's even tried to do something about it, with his start-up controversial website. But when Josh rises to messiah status of the internet world, he discovers that greed and superficiality are not easily escaped. Trapped inside his own creation, Josh feels his only way out is to stage his death and be free of his internet alter-ego, "Larry." But this plan comes with danger, and soon Josh finds himself cut off from the world, with no one to turn to for help. In this suspenseful young adult novel, Janet Tashjian has written a probing tour-de-force.

About this title

From the Inside Flap:

Josh Swensen is not your average 17-year-old. At the age of two, he was figuring out algebraic equations with colored magnetic numbers. He is a prodigy who only wants to make the world a better place. Josh?s wish comes true when his virtual alter ego, Larry, becomes a huge media sensation. Larry has his own Web site where he posts sermons on anti-consumerism and has a large following of adults and teens. Meanwhile, Larry?s identity is a mystery to everyone. While it seems as if the whole world is trying to figure out Larry?s true identity, Josh feels trapped inside his own creation. What will happen to the world, and to Larry, if he is exposed?

From the Back Cover:

“The voice is clear, the ending satisfying. The readers will eat this one up.”
–Kirkus Reviews, Starred

“A terrific read with a credible and lovable main character.”
–School Library Journal, Starred

About this edition

• Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0805063781
• ISBN 13: 9780805063783
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 240