Off the Page, by Jodi Picoult and Samantha van Leer | Book Review

The Children’s Book Review | May 23, 2015

Off the Page

Written by Jodi Picoult and Samantha van Leer

Illustrations by Yvonne Gilbert and Scott M. Fischer

Age Range: 12 and up

Hardcover: 384 pages

Publisher: Delacorte Press (May 19, 2015)

ISBN-13: 978-0553535563

What to expect: Romance, Humor, Adventure, Magic

Fantasy meets reality in Off the Page, a romantic comedy written for the young adult audience by New York Times bestselling authors Jodi Picoult and her daughter and coauthor, Samantha van Leer. It’s a sweet companion novel to Between the Pages.

“If a character sits in a book and no one reads it, is he truly alive?”

Oliver is a prince from the pages of a fairy tale and his girlfriend, Delilah, is helping him navigate the real world and high school. It was Delilah that wished Oliver out of his book and into reality—Oliver is besotted with Delilah, and vise versa. They appear to be proof of a fairy tale coming true. That is, until the book that Oliver came from wants him back within the pages.

Off the Page is full of great puns and funny mishaps and provides an entertaining interpretation of high school life and finding one’s place in the world—or, a world. Given that the main protagonists each take turns in narrating, the likable characters are easy to get to know. Picoult and Van Leer steer the story with a wonderful balance of make-believe and realism. The authors’ combined modern writing style and contemporary plot elements are enhanced by lovely color illustrations sprinkled throughout—each picture adding an essence of nostalgia with true fairy tale flair.

Readers that enjoy romance and dream of living happily ever after can delve right into this novel, but may also enjoy picking up a copy of Between the Pages to devour first. Off the Page is a fun romantic romp for the end of the school year or to kick-off summer reading.

Available Here: 

About the Authors

JODI PICOULT is the author of twenty-three novels, including the #1 New York Times bestsellers Leaving Time, The Storyteller, Lone Wolf, Sing You Home, House Rules, Handle with Care, Change of Heart, Nineteen Minutes, and My Sister’s Keeper. She also cowrote the #1 New York Times bestseller Between the Lines, the companion to Off the Page, with her daughter, Samantha van Leer. Jodi lives in New Hampshire with her husband and three children. Visit her online at jodipicoult.com.

SAMANTHA VAN LEER is a sophomore at Vassar College majoring in psychology with a minor in human development. She cowrote the #1 New York Timesbestseller Between the Lines, the companion to Off the Page, with her mother, Jodi Picoult.

Jodi and Samantha have four dogs: Alvin, Harvey, Dudley, and Oliver, for whom the prince in this story is named.

Off the Page, written by Jodi Picoult and Samantha van Leer, was reviewed by Bianca Schulze. Follow along with our book reviews and articles tagged with Acceptance, Adventure, Dorothy Hearst, Rivalry, Wolves and our Young Adult Books category to discover more great novels.