Nickel

Being a teenager is hard enough without your mother in rehab, your slightly inept stepfather doing his best not to screw things up, and your closest friend struck with a mysterious, debilitating illness. An admittedly quirky teenage boy, Coy is focused on his best friend Monroe, a girl who is finally diagnosed with heavy metal poisoning from her braces. As her illness manifests physically, Monroe’s outward appearance is mirrored by the inner turmoil of Coy, her only friend. Once Monroe gets sicker and Coy gets a girlfriend from another social crowd, the balance tips and Coy has to figure out how not to give up on his friend, his family, or himself. Nickel is a hilarious, heartbreaking and honest portrayal of the complicated world of being a teenager today.

Robert Wilder is the author of two critically acclaimed essay collections, Tales From The Teachers’ Lounge and Daddy Needs A Drink, both published by Delacorte Press.

Wilder has been teaching for twenty-five years and has earned numerous awards and fellowships, including the inaugural Innovations in Reading Prize by the National Book Foundation. He has published essays inNewsweek, Details, Salon, Parenting, Creative Nonfiction, plus numerous anthologies and has been a commentator for NPR’s Morning Edition. Wilder lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico.