Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life by Wendy Mass

From the Publisher

In one month Jeremy Fink will turn thirteen. But does he have what it takes to be a teenager? He collects mutant candy, he won't venture more than four blocks from his apartment if he can help it, and he definitely doesn't like surprises. On the other hand, his best friend, Lizzy, isn't afraid of anything, even if that might get her into trouble now and then.


Jeremy's summer takes an unexpected turn when a mysterious wooden box arrives in the mail. According to the writing on the box, it holds the meaning of life! Jeremy is supposed to open it on his thirteenth birthday. The problem is, the keys are missing, and the box is made so that only the keys will open it without destroying what's inside. Jeremy and Lizzy set off to find the keys, but when one of their efforts goes very wrong, Jeremy starts to lose hope that he'll ever be able to open the box. But he soon discovers that when you're meeting people named Oswald Oswald and using a private limo to deliver unusual objects to strangers all over the city, there might be other ways of finding out the meaning of life.


Lively characters, surprising twists, and thought-provoking ideas make Wendy Mass's latest novel an unforgettable read.

Publishers Weekly

What is the meaning of life? Mass (A Mango-Shaped Space) introduces a winning narrator who attempts to answer this question and ends up accomplishing much more. Jeremy and his best friend, Lizzy, are on a quest to discover Jeremy's purpose on earth before his 13th birthday. Set in New York City, the adventure begins when a mysterious box arrives. The package, assembled by his father before he died in a car accident five years prior (the man had a premonition of his early death), contains a sealed antique box inscribed with the message, "The Meaning of Life: For Jeremy Fink to Open on His 13th Birthday." The box can only be opened with a set of four keys, which have gone missing. Much of the novel's charm derives from Jeremy and Lizzy's unique friendship. Their personalities balance each other brilliantly-Lizzy the risktaker challenges Jeremy, who resists change. With less than a month to find the keys, the two meet a number of larger-than-life characters with their own life-lesson nuggets to bestow-most memorable among them the venerable pawnbroker, Mr. Oswald, for whom they make some surprising deliveries ("The harder something is to acquire, the more satisfying it is when you finally find it," says he). Jeremy and Lizzy find what they are looking for and more, but not where or in the way they expected. This exquisitely executed plot twist, combined with an ending that requires a few tissues, makes this soulful novel one not to miss. Ages 9-12. (Nov.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Children's Literature

Jeremy Fink's father died a few years before the boy's thirteenth birthday and left a mysterious box for Jeremy to open on that significant date. When it arrives in the mail, Jeremy discovers that it contains no less than the meaning of life, and he is determined to find the four keys to open the amazing box. Both Jeremy and his best friend Lizzy are the kind of kids you would love to know, with all their endearing quirks—Jeremy collects misshapen candies and Lizzy collects lost playing cards. They pass notes between their apartments via a hole in the wall. Both live with single parents who love them. In fact, you would have to search a long time for two more appealing, contemporary characters than these. As they search for the four keys, they visit flea markets, break into an abandoned office of a lawyer, and master the New York subway system. Adding an element of fantasy to the story, a mysterious man and his chauffeur send them on an adventure which opens Jeremy's eyes to the real meaning of life. The surprising plot twists make this story one kids will want to read more than once. In the end, Jeremy learns that his quest requires more than keys and a box. And that life is a lot more complicated and maybe even more exciting than he ever imagined.

Joanna Solomon - KLIATT

Quirky and endearing, Jeremy Fink is about to turn 13 and has just been presented with the opportunity for a wonderful adventure. His deceased father left behind a mysterious box engraved "The Meaning of Life," but it requires four different keys that have been lost. Mass chronicles the quest for the four keys conducted by Jeremy and his best friend and neighbor, Lizzy. The two main characters are charming and quite funny together, balancing each other out. Lizzy is loud, fiery, and spontaneous, while Jeremy is much less adventurous and prefers science books and learning trivia. The two bounce around New York City, getting into a bit of fun trouble that leads them to meet an intriguing cast of characters. The book is fairly mature, dealing with a true quest for the meaning of life. Along the way, Jeremy copes with a brief existential crisis, making him sound much older than 12. He is a loveable character, quite bright for his age and always rational. Well-written and captivating; the reader gets a chance to discover the meaning of life as well and will not be disappointed. KLIATT Codes: J--Recommended for junior high school students. 2006, Little, Brown, 290p., $15.99.. Ages 12 to 15.

School Library Journal

Gr 5-7-An elaborately locked wooden box requiring four separate but missing keys holds the treasure in this modern-day quest. Jeremy's father lived his life preparing for an early death, as foretold by a fortune-teller. He did, in fact, die when Jeremy was eight, but a package from him containing the locked box arrives one month before Jeremy's 13th birthday, the day on which the box is to be opened. With his friend Lizzy, Jeremy searches for the keys while contemplating the words engraved on the box, "The Meaning of Life: For Jeremy Fink. 13th Birthday." The search for the keys takes the friends around and about New York City, where they meet a large and increasingly convenient range of supporting characters, from members of a spiritualist congregation to a prominent astronomer, all of whom point them toward their own takes on the meaning of life. Mystery and adventure fans will be pulled in by the locked box, and, as a bonus, will get to know quirky, scientific Jeremy and impulsive Lizzy. Some readers might become impatient as the metaphysical quest lengthens, but those who stick with the story will find a warm picture of parental love and wisdom and of a boy growing into his own understanding and acceptance of life.-Faith Brautigam, Gail Borden Public Library, Elgin, IL Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews

Years before he died, Jeremy Fink's father prepared a box containing "the meaning of life" for his son to open on his 13th birthday. When Jeremy receives the box a few months before that momentous day, the keys are missing, and it's up to him and his best friend Lizzy to find a way into the box. The search for the keys-or, failing the keys, the meaning of life itself-takes the two throughout New York City and into a spot of trouble, which lands them a very unusual community-service sentence: They must return treasures to the children, now grown, who pawned them long ago. This device brings Jeremy and Lizzy-both originals to the core-into contact with a calculated variety of characters, all of whom have their own unique angles on the meaning of life. Mass spins a leisurely tale that's occasionally Konigsburg-esque, carefully constructed to give narrator Jeremy ample time to reflect on his encounters. It may be a subplot or two in need of a trim, and the resolution will surprise nobody but Jeremy, but agreeable on the whole. (Fiction. 10-13)

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