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Tim Cummings

Goodreads Author

Born

in Port Jefferson, The United States

January 15

Website

https://www.timcummings.ink

Genre

Literature & Fiction, Short Stories, Young Adult

Influences

Madeleine L'Engle
Toni Morrison
Beth Nugent
Ruth Chew
Joyce Carol Oates
Mar ...more

Member Since

May 2011

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Tim Cummings is the author of the multiple-award-winning coming-of-age novel, Alice the Cat, published by Fitzroy Books. It was chosen as an American Book Awards 'Best Book' Finalist for 2023, received a Bronze Medal in the 2024 Feathered Quill Book Awards, and is a Finalist in both the 2024 National Indies Excellence Awards for Teen Fiction and the Independent Author Network's Book of the Year Awards. His second novel, The Lightning People Play, was published summer 2025.

In addition to his passion for storytelling, Tim is an octopus and spider enthusiast. He goes wild for anything with eight legs. If you have any questions about spiders or octopuses, ask him. He recently discovered he is a masterful hula-hooper and can whirl non-stop for ...more

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Combine Editions
Tim Cummings’s books

Average rating: 4.35 · 250 ratings · 111 reviews · 6 distinct works • Similar authors

	Alice the Cat 4.23 avg rating — 112 ratings — published 2023 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Night Terrors Vol. 11: Short Horror Stories Anthology by Justin Boote (Goodreads Author), Melissa Gibbo, S.B. Duncan 4.33 avg rating — 80 ratings — published 2021 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Lightning People Play 4.66 avg rating — 41 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Orphans 4.58 avg rating — 12 ratings — published 2011 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Night Terrors Volumes 10 - 12: Short Horror Stories Anthology (Night Terrors, #10-12) by Scare Street (Editor), Peter Cronsberry (Contributor), Jackson Robinson (Contributor) 4.17 avg rating — 6 ratings — published 2021 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	ANTHOLOGY: The Ojai Playwrights Conference Youth Workshop 2006-2016 it was amazing 5.00 avg rating — 1 rating	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Tim Cummings's Blog

New Reviews

Hi hi hi. I'm sharing some new reviews that just dropped from Readers' Favorite.
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xTC

* Review Rating: 5 Stars –
Reviewed by K.C. Finn for Readers’ Favorite

The Lightning People Play by Tim Cummings is a young adult novel that mixes elements of magical realism with deeply grounded emotion. Kirby Renton is a 14-year-old boy trying to hold his family together. His younger brother Baxter suffe Read more of this blog post »

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Published on June 12, 2025 16:42 • Tags: the-lightning-people-play

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Tim is Currently Reading

Tim Cummings is currently reading

Many Things Under a Rock: The Mysteries of Octopuses

by David Scheel

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Jan 04, 2026 02:33PM

Tim Cummings is currently reading

The Lightning People Play

by Tim Cummings (Goodreads Author)

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Tim Cummings said: " Introducing my second novel, THE LIGHTNING PEOPLE PLAY. I specifically chose today, because March 26th is PURPLE DAY, dedicated to increasing awareness about epilepsy worldwide.

When his younger brother Baxter starts having seizures and receives visi Introducing my second novel, THE LIGHTNING PEOPLE PLAY. I specifically chose today, because March 26th is PURPLE DAY, dedicated to increasing awareness about epilepsy worldwide.

When his younger brother Baxter starts having seizures and receives visits from 'the lightning people,' who descend from the sky and show him three strange symbols, fourteen-year-old Kirby rallies his crew of brilliant theatre kids to put up a play to raise money for a seizure-alert dog, and their production opens an unexpected portal.... From the award-winning author of 'Alice the Cat' comes another intriguing tale set in the fictional town of Weirville, where more strange magic transforms the lives of the inimitable teens who live there.

Advance Praise:

"This book is sheer magic. The magic of the theatre, the magic of community, the magic of being one’s truest self all shimmer from the page like stars. Tim Cummings is such a star—he writes with such authenticity, such power, such charm, such vision, such heart. This book will change lives—it’s a breathtaking celebration of creativity and neurodivergence and connection and the messy beauty of being a human in a world filled with both pain and possibility. The Lightning People Play will forever sizzle inside me." – Gayle Brandeis author of The Art of Misdiagnosis and My Life with The Lincolns

"Tim Cummings weaves vivid, gripping tales filled with heart and irreverent humor, and told in an electric, irresistible voice. They’re pure fun to read and The Lightning People Play is a perfect showcase for his talents." – Jeff Zentner, Morris-award-winning author of The Serpent King and In The Wild Light.

"The narrator is sarcastic yet sweet, the plot funny yet scary. There are hilarious theatre kids with crushes on each other and villainous bullies roaming the halls. There are kinda heroic teens confronting mysterious symbols from the other side (maybe?). In other words: The Lightning People Play has absolutely everything you’d want in a YA novel, and then some." – Josh Berk, Edgar Award nominee and author of The Dark Days of Hamburger Halpin and Camp Murderface

"A dazzling, kinetic and bewitching journey of navigating the family we are born into, the family we choose and the inexhaustible worlds of carnivals, theatre barns and backyard forests that connect them all. I fell in love with acerbic theater nerd, Kirby Renton, as he drew me through his complicated, heartbreaking and agonizingly hilarious life – never knowing if he is going to triumph or burst into flames from page to page. The Lightning People Play is both an otherworldly delight and a touching homage to the underappreciated wisdom, resilience and devotion of an upcoming generation of humans." – Kim Maxwell, Ojai Playwrights Conference Co-Founder & Youth Program Director

"This novel is a beautiful, poignantly written depiction of the lengths one teenage boy will go to save his brother. Kirby, Baxter, Heddy the dog, and the rest of the cast—through theatre and seizures and sacrifice—evoke themes of brotherhood, sonship, and the healing power of art all while facing trauma, self-doubt, abandonment, and neurological disorders. Like lightning, Tim Cummings strikes to the core of what it means to love—and what it means to be a young person—during a time in life when the perils of adulthood threaten to keep us grounded. With the sentiment of John Green and the wit of Andrew Smith, The Lightning People Play celebrates what makes each of us special as well as the bonds that connect us as friends, as families, and as individuals. – Nathan Elias, author of Coil Quake Rift and The Reincarnations

"In Tim Cummings’s captivating YA novel, The Lightning People Play, fourteen-year-old Kirby will stop at nothing to help his little brother, Bax, who has epilepsy. Determined to raise funds for a seizure dog that could change Bax’s life, Kirby enlists his theater friends to create a mesmerizing play that reflects the otherworldly portal that Bax seems to enter when having a seizure. Kirby’s voice resonates with raw emotion as his synesthetic experiences draw him (and us!) deep into the complexities of his brother's condition. Lyrical prose mirrors the magic of the story, beautifully intertwining serious themes with a unique, well-paced, and often humorous storyline. This is a tender yet powerful tale that honors Cummings’s own brother whom he lost to epilepsy, and it serves as a reminder that with compassion and courage, even the youngest among us can make a difference." – Kimberly Behre Kenna, award-winning author of Jett Jamison and the Secret Storm

"Tim Cummings forms ice sculptures out of words—but The Lightning People Play is more than beautiful prose. Through Kirby and the ragtag band of thespians, stagehands, and mentors who aid him in helping his brother Bax, we experience family, enchantment, and the miracle of live performance. It’s a book about those momentous first steps towards a life in the arts, with all their accompanying rapture and sorrow." – Ari Rosenschein, author of Dr. Z and Matty Take Telegraph and Coasting ...more "

Mar 26, 2025 07:19PM · see review

Tim Cummings is currently reading

Alice the Cat

by Tim Cummings (Goodreads Author)

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Tim Cummings said: " Hello Goodreaders. Happy Thanksgiving. Today, Alice the Cat is six months out from its release date: May 23, 2023. I'm so thrilled. I just wanted to say hello and introduce this book to you. Pre-order links are available via my website, www.timcummin ...more "

Dec 01, 2022 11:48AM · see review

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Tim Cummings is 92% done with Alice the Cat Alice the Cat by Tim Cummings (Goodreads Author) progress:	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jan 06, 2026 02:41PM · like · see status
Tim Cummings is 99% done with The Lightning People Play The Lightning People Play by Tim Cummings (Goodreads Author) progress:	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jan 06, 2026 02:40PM · like · see status
Tim Cummings rated a book really liked it Why You Should Read Children's Books, Even Though You Are So Old and Wise by Katherine Rundell	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
A really lovely little exploration of the importance of children’s literature. As somebody who reads it, loves it, and writes it, I found this book—really it’s an essay—refreshing, a reminder of why these particular stories resonate so profoundly wit ...more
Jan 05, 2026 08:26AM · like · see review
Tim Cummings liked Tina’s status update Tina Mertz is currently reading Wild Dark Shore
Jan 05, 2026 08:26AM
Tim Cummings liked Dorothy’s status update Dorothy started reading Canticle
Jan 05, 2026 08:26AM
Tim Cummings rated a book really liked it Why You Should Read Children's Books, Even Though You Are So Old and Wise by Katherine Rundell	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
A really lovely little exploration of the importance of children’s literature. As somebody who reads it, loves it, and writes it, I found this book—really it’s an essay—refreshing, a reminder of why these particular stories resonate so profoundly wit ...more
Jan 05, 2026 08:24AM · like · see review
Tim Cummings started reading Many Things Under a Rock: The Mysteries of Octopuses by David Scheel	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jan 04, 2026 02:33PM · like
Tim Cummings wants to read Journey to the River Sea by Eva Ibbotson	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jan 04, 2026 07:37AM · like
Tim Cummings wants to read Many Things Under a Rock Young Readers Edition: The Mysteries of Octopuses by David Scheel	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jan 02, 2026 10:16AM · like
Tim Cummings wants to read Mirror in the Mirror by Michael Ende	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jan 02, 2026 10:16AM · 1 like · like

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Quotes by Tim Cummings (?)

“It’s easier for me to make sense of it that way than it is for me to face the other way—reality. And yet, those evil spirits that were unleashed—be they fake entities from a stupid carnival ride, or cruel malevolencies from dark spiritual chasms of our universe—have stayed with me all these years”
― Tim Cummings, Orphans

“I leave the kitchen table to bathe, and to dress for church. If only my closet held on its shelves an array of faces I could wear rather than dresses, I would know which face to put on today. As for the dresses, I haven't a clue.”
― Tim Cummings, Orphans

“Listen, we’ll come visit you. Okay? I’ll dress up as William Shakespeare, Lucent as Emily Dickinson, and beautiful ‘Ray’ as someone dashing and manly like Jules Verne or Ernest Hemingway...and we’ll write on your white-room walls. We’ll write you out of your supposed insanity. I love you, Micky Affias.

-James (from "Descendants of the Eminent")”
― Tim Cummings

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Topics Mentioning This Author

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Goodreads Librari...: The Lightning People Play	2	8	Apr 28, 2025 04:56PM

Tim’s Quotes

“Books are the quietest and most constant of friends; they are the most accessible and wisest of counselors, and the most patient of teachers.”
― Charles W. Eliot

tags: books, friends, reading, teachers

13926 likes

“Never trust anyone who has not brought a book with them.”
― Lemony Snicket, Horseradish: Bitter Truths You Can't Avoid

tags: books, reading

27729 likes

“I learned this, at least, by my experiment: that if one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.”
― Henry David Thoreau, Walden: Or, Life in the Woods

8352 likes

“It's hard to lead a cavalry charge if you think you look funny on a horse.”
― Adlai E. Stevenson

tags: horses, leadership, war

987 likes

“Memory is a snare, pure and simple; it alters, it subtly rearranges the past to fit the present.”
― Mario Vargas Llosa

811 likes

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