NOGGIN by John Corey Whaley

Sixteen-year-old Travis Coates had cancer. He was going to die. And then this super experimental medical treatment presented itself. Would he be willing to have his head cut off and frozen for a few years, because there just might be a procedure in the future that could reattach his head to a healthy donor body? Sure, why not?

The potential of a life, even if it's a life long after everyone he knows is gone, is a risk Travis is willing to take. And it works. He wakes up with a brand new, super fantastic, healthy body. Except it isn't 100 years later. It's only five.

Which is great because he still has his parents and his friends ... well, sort of. Everyone is five years older than him, of course. He has to go back to high school and they've already graduated. And that includes Travis's girlfriend, who has grieved him and moved on.

NOGGIN is a coming of age story unlike any other as Travis must restart his old life in a new body, adjust to his celebrity status (he's one of only a few people who have survived the re-attachment surgery), convince his girlfriend they are still meant to be together (even though she's engaged to someone else), and figure out why his best friend (who came out to him just before the beheading) apparently never told anyone else he was gay.

John Corey Whaley, author of the Printz Award/William C. Morris Award-winning WHEN THINGS COME BACK, tackles all these heavy issues with the sarcastic wit and humor of a sixteen year old boy, taking the reader on such an enjoyable ride that it's easy to suspend the disbelief of the original premise. Travis is just so darn likable you can't help but root for him, even though you know the things he wants aren't necessarily what's best for him.

Appropriate for grades 9 and up because of some language and, shall we say, typical teenage boy situations. NOGGIN will appeal to any high schoolers, but would be ideal for the reluctant male reader.