Finding Normal

Fitzroy Books Titles
$18.95 - $28.95
Current Stock:
0
SKU:
FN25

Expected release date is 21st Jan 2025

There are five towns in the U.S. named “Normal” and seventeen-year-old Gemma Leonardo plans on visiting every one of them. Right after she escapes Children’s Hospital in Harrisburg, where she’s being treated for anorexia. Enter Lucas Polizzi, a high school wrestler with bulimia and, more importantly to Gemma, a getaway car. Sick of being told they’re sick, Gemma and Lucas team up for a themed road trip to “the Normals” on one condition—they can’t mention food, ever. But as each passing mile puts their lives at greater risk, they soon realize it is their growing love and friendship, not a place on a map, that will put put them on the path to recovery.

Praise for Finding Normal

"A sardonic, funny, heart-warming postcard from the ever-elusive land of normal. Perfectionist Gemma and sporty Lucas invite us on a wild road-trip escape, filled with camping, milky coffee, greasy diners, heart-to-hearts, an adopted raccoon, and grungy motel rooms, as they learn together that the heart is a muscle that needs to be fed." 

– Colby Cedar Smith, author of the verse novels The Siren and the Star (Simon & Schuster, 2025) and Call Me Athena (Andrews McMeel, 2021)

“A riveting tale of two not-so-‘normal’ teens (and a baby raccoon) who are on the lam and heading across the country toward self-discovery, self-acceptance and each other. Funny, edgy and touching, Finding Normal is a can’t-miss read.”

—Val Emmich, New York Times bestselling author of Dear Evan Hansen: The Novel

“If only getting where you wanted to be in life could be as easy as pointing to a spot on the map and following an already-laid-out course. But Lucas and Gemma teach us that such a journey is important, to a great extent, because each one of us has to chart the path ourselves. Doktorski’s voice is equal parts funny and real, and as a reader, you’ll be more than glad to be along on her characters’ life-changing ride.”

—Holly Schindler, award-winning author of A Blue So Dark

“On a road trip to Finding Normal, Gemma and Lucas build a deep friendship that leads them someplace neither of them ever could have imagined.”

—J. Albert Mann, award-winning author of The Degenerates

“A beautifully written novel full of humor and hope, a unique cast of characters, and a compelling voice. Readers will be cheering for Gemma on her journey to self-discovery through the backroads of America, in which she learns that the destination isn’t always a dotted line on a map.”  

—Crissa-Jean Chappell, author of Sun Don't Shine