XL (novel)

Last updated

XL
XL A Love Story of Epic Proportions.jpg
Author Scott Brown
Cover artistPaul Blow
LanguageEnglish
GenreYoung Adult
Publisher Knopf
Publication date
April 2, 2020
Publication placeUnited States of America
Media typePrint (Hardcover)
Pages314 first edition
ISBN 978-1-5247-6624-5

XL is a novel by Scott Brown. It features Will Daughtry, a high school student living near San Diego, California. [1]

Contents

The novel is set in a fictional neighborhood called Poca Resaca, in California. [1]

Plot summary

The book is written in first-person, from the point of view of the main character, Will Daughtry. [1]

The book opens with a prologue, outlining what the book is about.

Part One, "Hobbit", opens with Will's birthday, something he is dreading. Will is turning 16, and he is just under 5 feet. Will's growth was stunted from an early age, and he feels doomed to shortness forever. he celebrates his birthday, hangs out with friends, gets a present from one of his best friends (Monica). The present is a One Ring replica. He also gets a car, a Fiat Ovum, in orbital blue. There is an important basketball game in which is stepbrother is playing. His stepbrother, "The Spesh", Andrew Tannenger, is the team's star player. After the game (which they win), Drew gets taken to a mansion where one of the popular kids lives. Will, coming to pick him up, notices Drew and Monica making out, therefore breaking one of the unspoken rules of their friendship. [1]

Part Two, "Man", opens with Will finding out that he's grown two inches in less than a month. After having learned this, he tells his parents, who are shocked. He then goes to his doctor, Dr. Helman, who is puzzled. She thinks it may be cancer, but this is ruled out. He grows more, and becomes an internet celebrity, because of a timelapse GIF his friend Roderick Raftsman Rhinehardt Royall (Rafty) made. The GIF shows photos of him next to his Fiat for 90 days, getting taller. [1]

Part Three, "Leviathan", is named for a book that Monica reads throughout the book. It opens with a thread of messages between him and [jack], an online troll who has chosen to target him because of his popularity. Then it cuts to Game Day, a championship game. After that, he confronts [jack], they talk, and [jack] goes into therapy. [jack] is revealed to be Ethan Neville, the yearbook photographer. [1]

The plot reaches a climax when, at the Lowlands (a gorilla habitat where Will is interning), the three friends have a meeting. Eventually, things break down, though, and Will almost punches Drew. Monica hooks his arm, and his momentum (he is mid swing) pulls her down has he is as well. She gets injured, and goes to the hospital. She then checks herself out, and goes to the beach. The two find her there, preparing to surf the legendary Sawtooth, a killer wave. In the end, she succeeds, and they all make up, and they're inseparable again. [1]

Characters

Main

Side

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joey Tribbiani</span> Fictional character from the American sitcoms Friends and Joey

Joseph Francis Tribbiani Jr. is a fictional character, serving as one of the primary characters of the NBC sitcom Friends and the protagonist of its spin-off Joey. He is portrayed by Matt LeBlanc in both series.

<i>Hotel du Lac</i> 1984 novel by Anita Brookner

Hotel du Lac is a 1984 novel by English writer Anita Brookner. It centres on Edith Hope, a romance novelist who is staying in a hotel on the shores of Lake Geneva. There she meets other English visitors, including Mrs Pusey, Mrs Pusey's daughter Jennifer, and an attractive middle-aged man, Mr Neville.

Hard Time is a comic book series written by Steve Gerber and Mary Skrenes and originally published by DC Focus, a short-lived imprint of DC Comics. The aim of the imprint was to feature super-powered characters who did not follow the traditional format of classic superhero adventures. Hard Time's first run was 12 issues long, published from April 2004 to March 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lucas Holden</span> Soap opera character

Lucas Holden is a fictional character from the Australian television soap opera Home and Away, played by Rhys Wakefield. The character made his first screen appearance on 5 August 2005. Lucas was the youngest member of Holden family. Wakefield left the show in 2008.

"The One Where Ross Got High" is the ninth episode of Friends' sixth season. It first aired on the NBC network in the United States on November 25, 1999.

"The One in Vegas" is a double length episode of Friends' fifth season. It first aired on the NBC network in the United States on May 20, 1999, as the finale of season five.

<i>Ethan Mao</i> 2004 Canadian film

Ethan Mao is a 2004 drama film written and directed by Quentin Lee. It was shown at the AFI Film Festival on November 10, 2004, and the Hong Kong Lesbian and Gay Film Festival on December 10 of the same year. The DVD was released in North America on September 20, 2005.

"The One with Monica and Chandler's Wedding" is a double length episode of the television sitcom Friends. It first aired on May 17, 2001 as the finale of season seven. It is usually broadcast in a one-hour slot and presented on DVD as one complete episode, but when the episodes are split the two parts are differentiated by the suffixes Part 1 and Part 2. For his guest appearance, Gary Oldman was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series.

<i>The Full Monty</i> (musical) Musical by Terrence McNally and David Yazbek

The Full Monty is a musical with book by Terrence McNally and score by David Yazbek.

"The One in Barbados" is a double length episode of Friends, the final episode of the ninth season. It first aired on the NBC network in the United States on May 15, 2003.

<i>Time Hollow</i> 2008 video game

Time Hollow is a Japanese adventure visual novel video game developed and published by Konami for the Nintendo DS video game console. The game was released in Japan on March 19, 2008, North America on September 23, 2008, and Europe on February 6, 2009. The game was written by Junko Kawano, whose PlayStation 2 work Shadow of Memories also features a young man using a time-travelling device to try and alter their future.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ethan Lovett</span> Fictional character

Ethan Lovett is a fictional character from General Hospital, an American soap opera on the ABC network. The role was originated by Nathan Parsons, who appeared from January 30, 2009, to March 7, 2012. Parsons returned for guest appearances in April 2013, July 2015 and September 2020, respectively. In April 2023, the role was portrayed by James Ryan.

<i>Tales of Wrykyn and Elsewhere</i> 1997 collection of short stories by P. G. Wodehouse

Tales of Wrykyn and Elsewhere is a collection of short stories by British writer P. G. Wodehouse, first published on 1 October 1997 by Porpoise Books, London, with illustrations by T. M. R. Whitwell. It contains previously uncollected work, most of the stories having first appeared in the schoolboy's magazines such as The Captain and Public School Magazine. It was reprinted by Penguin Random House under its Everyman's Library imprint in 2014.

<i>Adam-12</i> (1990 TV series) 1990 television series

Adam-12 is an American police procedural crime drama television series produced by Arthur L. Annecharico, Burton Armus, and John Whitman under The Arthur Company and Universal Television. It is a syndicated revival of the 1968–1975 series of the same name created by Robert A. Cinader and Jack Webb and features the same premise with different characters and an updated setting, following Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers Matt Doyle and Gus Grant as they patrol Los Angeles in their police cruiser, assigned the call sign "1-Adam-12". The New Adam-12 stars Ethan Wayne and Peter Parros, and co-stars Miguel Fernandes, Alma Martinez, Linden Ashby, and Harri James, among others. The series ran over two seasons of 26 episodes each, and aired consecutively for 52 straight weeks, with the entire series airing over one full calendar year from September 24, 1990 to September 16, 1991.

<i>Something Borrowed</i> (film) 2011 American film

Something Borrowed is a 2011 American romantic comedy film based on Emily Giffin's 2005 book of the same name, directed by Luke Greenfield, starring Ginnifer Goodwin, Kate Hudson, Colin Egglesfield, and John Krasinski and distributed by Warner Bros.

<i>Hotel du Lac</i> (film) 1986 television film directed by Giles Foster

Hotel du Lac is a television version of the 1984 Booker prize-winning novel by Anita Brookner. It stars Anna Massey and Denholm Elliott and was released in 1986 as an episode of the BBC's Screen Two series. It was directed by Giles Foster, produced by Sue Birtwistle with music by Carl Davis and cinematography by Kenneth MacMillan.

"The One After 'I Do'" is the first episode of Friends' eighth season. It first aired on the NBC network in the United States on September 27, 2001.

<i>Fifty Shades Freed</i> Erotic romance novel by E.L. James

Fifty Shades Freed is the third and final installment of the erotic romance Fifty Shades Trilogy by British author E. L. James. After accepting entrepreneur CEO Christian Grey's proposal in Fifty Shades Darker, Anastasia Steele must adjust not only to married life but to her new husband's wealthy lifestyle and controlling nature. The paperback edition was first published in April 2012.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 Brown, Scott (April 2, 2020). XL. New York: Knopf Books.