The Strange Fascinations of Noah Hypnotik

March 1, 2018
Noah Oakman is having a rough year.There's the issue of his bad back, which has pretty much blown his champion swimming career out of the water (or has it?). And then there are the strange incongruities that keep popping up after he gets very drunk at a party one night and ends up hanging out with the son of a dead inventor (or does he?). A new scar on his mother's cheek, a clumsy dog that's suddenly cured, a best friend (gay and of Puerto Rican and Dutch descent) who is suddenly into Marvel instead of DC Comics--all these bizarre occurrences create a patchwork of confusion and dread. What happened to him the night of the party? Why does he keep having the same dream over and over? To find the answer, Noah, a white Midwestern boy, embarks on a deep dive within himself and navigates the psychological inconsistencies within his own mind with a mix of intellectual connections and acute self-importance (he is a teenager, after all) that occasionally veers toward self-indulgence. Arnold's (Kids of Appetite, 2016, etc.) major plot points often feel convenient rather than revelatory, though the book as a whole hangs together well as a what-if, second-chance, awaking-from-a-dream narrative.A compelling exploration of a life within a life. (Fiction. 14-17)

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March 19, 2018
In Arnold’s (Mosquitoland) dry-witted and existentially minded story, 16-year-old Noah Oakman’s life has been laid out in front of him. College swimming recruiters are calling, and all he sees ahead of him are four unfulfilling years at a college he is unenthusiastic about. To get some breathing space, he fakes a back injury, and afterward, begins to focus more on his strange fascinations: four seemingly unconnected people. During a disorienting drunken night, Noah meets Circuit Lovelock, the son of a famous inventor, telling him “It’s like my life is this old sweater. And I’ve outgrown it.” Circuit’s attempt to hypnotize Noah recalibrates his reality, and everything has changed, except for his strange fascinations and a handful of people who, Noah realizes, share a common trait: loneliness. Arnold’s characters are seeking higher meaning but he manages to keep the story from drifting into the esoteric by creating moments of true tenderness. Noah’s own writing (“I think writing is less about the words and more about the silence between them”) and his internal exploration propel the narrative forward, allowing Arnold to explore the stagnancy of a predetermined path and unanswered questions about reality, interpretation, and imagination. Ages 14–up. Agent: Daniel Lazar, Writers House.

Starred review from April 1, 2018

Gr 9 Up-It's nearly the end of summer before senior year, and introspective David Bowie fan Noah Oakman feels stuck. The Rosa-Haas twins, Val and Alan, have been Noah's best friends since he moved to Iverton, IL. When Val drags him to a drinking party he'd rather not attend, Noah decides to imbibe, the night gets stranger than he expected; he gets hypnotized by a homeschooled kid. Suddenly, everything feels different in "most peculiar" small ways. The past, the present, and everyone has slight differences that are making him question his sanity. Why is Val suddenly talking about UCLA instead of SAIC? Why is Alan's room filled with Marvel instead of DC comics like it always had been? And Noah is sure that his parents watched Friends every night, but suddenly it is, was, and always will be Seinfeld. Readers are in for a weird, light sci-fi adventure here with a major twist and an unexpected third act emergency. Arnold's latest is ambitious, bizarre, and a book his fans will adore. While a bit heady, this is a comedic coming-of-age tale with plenty of pop culture and literary references and the snarky, casual, and observational feel of a mumblecore comedy. Supporting characters are fully fleshed out and hilarious. VERDICT A weird, compelling teen-angst trip that will appeal to fans of John Corey Whaley.-Emily Moore, Camden County Library System, NJ

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2019
It's the summer before senior year, and Noah's two best friends drag him to a party, even though he'd rather be listening to Bowie and contemplating his recurring dream. After he's hypnotized at this party, his friends and family start to exhibit minute but profound changes, and Noah is the only one who sees them. A darkly comedic, surreal examination of connections and shared histories.

(Copyright 2019 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

Starred review from March 15, 2018
Grades 9-12 *Starred Review* Noah is a rising senior who loves three other things: David Bowie, making real-world connections, and minutiae. Life is good, except Noah dreads returning to the swim team, making a decision about college, and being alone. After leaving an end-of-summer party drunk, Noah feels hypnotized. As a result, he detects slight changes in his family, friends, and external life. The minutiae turn into obsessions, four of which become his Strange Fascinations: a local semi-celebrity musician, who dropped a photo that is now in Noah's possession; an old man with a goiter, who he sees walking alone every morning; his favorite deceased author, whose words and sketches are codes to crack; and a woman on YouTube, whose video is comprised of pictures she has taken of herself every day for four decades. They are the only things in his life that go unchanged, and he sets out to learn why, making connections he never dreamed of in the process. Highly introspective and strangely fascinating, Noah dominates this surreal story with his complex internal struggles to make sense of external world ch-ch-ch-changes. Arnold (Kids of Appetite, 2016) has written an in-your-face validation of the power of real and honest friendship, guaranteed to mesmerize readers and leave them altered.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)