I got to celebrate my first Christmas of the year with family last Sunday, and I received two of my favorite presents–a book!  and another book!  One of those books was The Pull of Gravity by Gae Polisner.  You are going to love it, as did many other readers.  That’s right.  The Pull of Gravity is one of the winners for YA Fiction for the first Nerdies Award.  Here are some of my favorite things about The Pull of Gravity:

1. It’s a book about a book.  Okay, not really, but Nick and Jaycee travel with a signed first edition of John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men. They read it to each other and quote it.  You could say it inspires them.  Gang aft agley.  (Read the book if you want to get it.)
2. It’s a road trip!  Nick and Jaycee head off on a bus to Rochester to fulfill the dying wish of their friend Scooter.  He wants the dad he never met to have his copy of Of Mice and Men, worth just $15,000.
3. It has romance–not too much, but just right.  In fact the friendships in this story are much more important, but the growing romance fits.  As Nick and Jaycee travel together, all their plans unravel.  Somehow, if they just stick together, it might all work out.
4. Nick.  Nick is the Fever King and doesn’t always know what to say or do in every situation.  He ignores his dad’s emails (from Fat Man Walking, 2) and and isn’t sure at all they should be chasing down someone who walked out on Scooter.
5. Jaycee.  I love this girl with her troll necklaces, slinky bracelets, and orange Converse sneakers.  Even more, I love how she takes charge to do what she thinks is right, even when it sounds crazy.