The Big Nothing

by Adrian Fogelin

When everyone that Justin depends on lets him down, he begins discovering himself with the help of a new friend and some newly found talents.

Alone. That's how thirteen-year-old Justin feels these days. His older brother Duane has left home, enlisting in the Army, and his father has walked out, maybe for good this time. His mom is too depressed to get out of bed. And if that's not enough, his best buddy Ben has a new girlfriend and no longer has time to hang out. There's not much left for Justin to do but to put his brain in neutral and slide into the state he calls "the Big Nothing."

But slowly Justin discovers he has more resources than he thinks. With the help of his classmate Jemmie and her grandmother, Nana Grace, he learns that underneath all the noisy confusion in his brain lies a talent for music. As he spends time with Jemmie, he begins to understand how simple notes make complex music, and how simple feelings can turn into deep emotions.

Award-winning author Adrian Fogelin once again offers readers an emotionally charged story featuring a sympathetic adolescent trying to make sense of the people and world around him.

Genres: Young Adult, Realistic Fiction, Contemporary

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Adrian Fogelin is the author of several novels for middle readers and young adults, including Crossing Jordan and The Real Question. She lives in Florida.

Reviews

[Sophia Barsuhn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Almost four stars, but only gets a three because I absolutely hated the zero chemistry “romance” between Justin and Jemmie (every interaction between them felt very unbelievable; they felt more like distant acquaintances than friends or boyfriend/girlfriend). This is definitely the weakest of the Neighborhood Novels so far.

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

¨The front yard blurs. The exact moment I drain out of the me who cares and pour into the Big Nothing is like the second between being awake and asleep; It´s hard to pinpoint. But as soon as it happens, the Battle of the Units fades to a fuzzy blah-blah-blah. Ladies and gentlemen, Justin Riggs has just left his body.¨ The Big Nothing is a realistic fiction book. What I think overall of the story, is that at first I didn't understand completely what was happening, but when I finished the book it all made sense.

The setting is mostly at Justin's Riggs house. Justin has some family problems, he describes his life as a "big nothing". His mom is accusing his dad of cheating, his brother gets deployed to a mission in Iraq, He has "girl troubles". For this story I don't really think person vs person fits the conflict. It's close but mostly in my point of view I think that this story conflict can be "Person Vs Life". Like Justin keeps on trying to "defeat" his life. Justin thinks that Life has it in for him. He keeps trying to make his life better and not boring. Some examples are that Justin doesn't think that his parents should get back together. He tries to be the "man of the house", since his brother is getting deployed to Iraq and he doesn't feel like his family needs his dad. I think that one theme for this book could be; "Be a leader not a follower". I think that can be a theme because he decides to act like a leader and decides to take things into his own rulings. An example is that He likes Jammie Lewis so he decides to be different and play it cool while his friends that also like Jammie are pretending to be someone else that their not. Another example is that after his dad tries to "show up" back in his life, he doesn't forgive him at all. When his dad left he took charge and tried to make sure his family didn't fall apart. He wanted to prove to his mom that they didn't need his dad.

A major event that changed Justin was the time where his dad calls him and Justin hears a woman's voice in the background and Justin believes that his dad is cheating on his mom. This is an important moment because this is the part in the story when after this part his feelings change for his dad. He doesn't see his dad the way he use to. "I hold the phone and listen to his breathing on the other end of the line. Seems like I have something more to say to him, or he should have something more to say to me. I'm about to give up and get Mom when I hear a woman's voice. "You going to be much longer, hon?" "Who was that?" I demand, my stomach feeling strange. Normally I would laugh too, but I feel off balance. I keep hearing the voice on the other end of the line: "you going to be much longer, hon?" The more times I play it over and over, the more I think, yeah, it wasn't the tv." After this example Justin begins to feel like he's been lied to his whole life. He feels different towards his dad.

I didn't really like the way the author ended this book because I personally feel like the ending should be more detailed about what happens to his life. I really like how the author makes Justin more mature than his other friends. I liked how the author made Justin make a song called "Sweet Jammie" and that he confessed his feelings for her at the end when he shows her the song he wrote.

I give this book a 4/5 stars because for me it felt boring to read in the beginning and I didn't really know what was happening until further in the book. I recommend this book to people who like reading realistic fiction.. Honestly I don't know who to recommend this book to but I chose this book because it looked interesting and I read a few pages and it was interesting, so I'm glad I got this book.

[Will Carta · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the book The Big Nothing by Adrian Fogelin a boy named Justin Riggs who lives in Florida and he does not have a very good life. His family is not very good also. His dad is gone and he might not return and Justin’s brother Duane is away in the army. Justin’s best friend Ben is drifting away from Justin because Ben has a new girlfriend. The book has lots of letters that Justin sends to his brother in Iraq. These letters explain a lot and help you understand the characters better and what they are going through. In the end Justin’s dad comes home and that helps Justin feel better. Because of his dad coming home Justin’s family is now much happier. I would recommend this book for high school and middle school students. It is a fun book to read and it does not get boring. This is a very fun book to read so you should read it.

[Sela · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed "The Big Nothing" by Adrian Fogelin. It wasn't very action packed, but it was very true to the heart. Every young adult can relate to the struggles Justin has to navigate: school, crushes, parents, and especially friendship. This book had refreshing vocabulary, and interesting plot twist. I would recommend this book to young teens.

[Cassie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book pretty boring. The narrative needed revisions imo to make it more honed. There were details added that seemed important but then were totally forgotten in the next few chapters. The ending made it seem like a love story, but the rest of the book was tonally different. I don't know. It seemed like this book didn't know what it wanted to be. And overall, I didn't enjoy reading it.

[Seema M. Fazil · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars

I really loved it! Too bad didn't get to finish it earlier, as things kept getting in the way. One little thing I didn't like about it though. I felt the ending seemed a bit rushed... I would have loved to see Duane coming back from the war. I've been looking forward for a resolution between the brothers.

[Darby]

the big nothing. this book truly is the title in every way. Its a story of an average guy by the name of Justin Riggs. Justin is from a rural area. living his life like a lot of teenagers do. the only thing that makes him different is his family, which consists of his brother Duane and his parents. his parents like many sad married couples are have fallen out of love and now only interact to argue and get each other upset. Even when his fathers on business trips the household does not rest, because a stressed wife has to worry about her "cheating" husband. Before graduating Duane his older brother would usually fix these arguments between the parents, but now that Duane graduated and gone off to the army instead of college Justin left at home to deal with a worried slightly depressed mother and a not so worried father whose found it more useful to go on business trips then to stay home. but that does not stop Justin from trying to be like a regular teenage boy. and like many teenagers hes found a girl to keep him busy. Jimmie, a sporty girl who doesn't have a care as to what people think of her, its kind of hard not to admire someone like that. Justin would usually not engage in a girl like that but his best friend, Ben happens to be dating her best friend so the two are forced together when they become a third wheel to the inseparable "love birds" they knew as best friends. In this odd friendship that formed Justin makes a small discovery in his dull life,music. jemmies grandmother takes a liking to Justin and after awhile they form another odd friendship which is based off the piano in the living room of jemmies house. another to learn about Justin is his outlook on his life. even though its not said directly. There's many references to the fact that Justin just doesn't seem to think hes important, nothing really going for him. And when this piano comes into his life and for the first time he feels something different, something he never has come to experiences. the keys on that piano seem to speak for him in a way he just cant.
a reason as to why the piano is so necessary to Justin happiness may just be the fact that hes got a mom at hoe who cant seem to make it out of bed. but he doesn't let that get to him. or it may be the fact that his dad takes a break from being a dad for a couple weeks to go on a business trip. But if that doesn't get to him surely the fact that his brother may be shipping out to war might break him? but no, Justin Riggs will not break. he will not complain. but he will make music, like girls, get jealous,worry about acne, and walk around in worn out shoes. It may seem like a big time in his life. maybe he should lay low for awhile take time to himself. but he will not. nothings going to bother him. Because its all just a big nothing to him.

[Nanni Epp · Rating 5 out of 5]

Justin lebt mit seinen Eltern in einer eher ruhigen Wohngegend. Nur bei ihm Zuhause ist es meistens sehr laut, denn seine Eltern streiten. Momentan hat er das Gefühl, dass es keine Zeit mehr ohne Streit gibt. Seine Mom wirft seinem Dad vor, sie auf Geschäftsreise zu betrügen. Aber das stimmt mit Sicherheit nicht. Schließlich hat Dad immer plausible Ausreden, wenn Mom wieder mal etwas findet, was ihrer Meinung nach ein Indiz dafür ist, dass er ihr fremd geht.

All der Streit zwischen den Eltern führt dazu, dass Justin Mutter in eine Depression abgerutscht ist. Sie liegt fast nur noch auf dem Sofa, meldet sich an der Arbeit krank, wäscht nicht, kocht nicht und sorgt auch nicht für ausreichend Nahrung im Haus. Hinzu kommt, dass Justin Bruder, der Soldat ist, in den Krieg ziehen muss. Eine belastende Situation für alle.

"Mom kümmert sich wieder etwas mehr um den Haushalt. Sie bringt die Dinge nicht zu Ende, aber sie fängt sie zumindest schon mal an."

Von all dem soll Jemmie, das Mädchen aus der Nachbarschaft nichts mitbekommen. Auf irgendeine Art mag Justin Jemmie. Wie genau kann er nicht so recht einschätzen. Nicht so, wie sein Freund Ben seine Freundin Cassie mag. Das was die zwei machen ist irgendwie nervig. Mit Jemmie ist es anders. Sie löst eine Melodie in Justin aus. Eine Melodie, die ihm immer im Kopf herum schwirrt und nicht vergessen kann.

Ich mag die Kombination aus sehr ernster und bedrückender Geschichte und Justins sehr alltäglichen Teenie Problemen, wie Pickel, erstes Date oder wie gehe ich mit einem Mädchen um, damit es mich mag. Die Autorin holt ihn damit in ein Leben, wie es sich für Jungs seines Alters gehört. Zuhause hat er das nicht immer. Dort ist das Eltern-Kind-Gefüge durch die Erkrankung der Mutter verschoben und nicht selten erschreckt es mich, wie sehr die Mutter Justin vernachlässigt, ohne es zu merken.

"Die Musik begleitet mich auf meinem Nachhauseweg. Es ist wie der Soundtrack meines Lebens als Film. Während ich gehe, verschiebt sich die Melodie wieder nach Moll. Ich mag der Star in dem Film sein, aber es ist ein trauriger Film."

Schwierige Situationen helfen jedoch auch dabei zu wachsen. Wichtig ist dabei, zu sich selbst zu finden. Kraft zu schöpfen in dem Rahmen, den man hat, um diesen dann zu erweitern. Eine Erfahrung, die nicht nur Justin macht, sondern auch seine Mutter. Jeder auf seine eigene Art und Weise.

"Ein Lied für Jemmie" ist ein echter Geheimtipp im Jugendbuchgenre. Gefühlvoll und so fein, wie die Melodien, die Justin im Kopf hat, schreibt Autorin Adrian Fogelin von der Zerbrechlichkeit von Familie und Glück und der zarten Gefühle der ersten Liebe.

[Benji · Rating 5 out of 5]

Big Nothing Book Review
Think about being a teenage boy who has to take care of his mom. Think about you having to be a psychiatrist for your mom because your dad left her. This is what Justin Riggs has to go through every day.
The Big Nothing is about a boy named Justin whose brother, Duane, is in Iraq and his jerk of a dad is in Atlanta with his new girlfriend. However, the dad may realize that he shouldn’t have left at all. This makes his dad’s real wife go into a state of depression and Justin needs to take charge. All this and Justin realizes he has a crush on the girl he’s lived next door to for his entire life. Justin needs to do all of the man jobs such as paying the bills and cooking with no help at all. The only way he can get away from all of this is if he goes into a reclusive state called “the big nothing” where he sort of brings himself out of his body to get away from all his troubles.
This book takes place in a neighborhood in a suburban part of a city in “god-knows-where.” Justin is not very smart so his grades go down the toilet, but who can blame him since he has to do all the work in his house. I think the theme of this book is taking care of others because Justin has to take care of his mom through the entire book. I think that this book could be improved by adding an actual climax to the book. I felt that there was no laid out climax in the book at all. The whole book has four “mini-climaxes,” however there is not one really big event. This book has a great lesson: to never give up and don’t lose faith. Overall I give this book two “Cats named Gizmo,” up.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

So far, this is my least favorite in the Neighborhood series. It was a good story, but I had several problems with it; both as a story and as a book geared for middle schoolers.

Firstly, story telling: Where was Anna during this whole book? She still lives in the neighborhood, but somehow never once was around or even mentioned.

I felt like there was too much going on. Especially with Cass and Ben's side-story. We only ever saw bits and pieces of their relationship and that drove me nuts. Because why was Cass crying? What did her dad say to Ben's dad to make it so hostile between them? We don't know and then next time we see them, everything is fine. And because the story is told through Justin's pov, I still am not sure what happened between Jemmie and Leroy. There are just too many unanswered questions in this book.

Now, as far as the target audience, I don't think this book is appropriate at all. There is a lot of language, way more than in any of the three previous books. Justin's older brother has a stockpile of Playboy magazines and they have a conversation about the big "it." A thirteen year old boy wonders if a thirteen year old girl wears lingerie or if she sleeps in the nude. I know I wouldn't want my middle schooler reading this book.

I have to say I appreciate the story. I felt like there was a good balance of "war is evil" and "we're doing what's right" in terms of the Iraqi invasion. I wasn't a huge fan of the Jemmie romance angle, but I must say I liked the ending more than I thought I would.

It is a good book, but I have some problems with it.

[Cheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been reading a lot of YA chick lit lately. It's amusing and nice but a lot of it involves upper middle-class characters and the trials and tribulations of not being popular. Don't get me wrong, they have troubles too. I was happy to read this book because the main character is male, working-class, and has other problems than just liking the wrong boy.

Justin is dealing with a possible divorce of his parents and helping his mother as she delves into depression. His brother has enlisted because they couldn't afford college and that sports scholarship did not pull through. Now the US is going into Iraq to look for WMD's and he was shipped overseas. Like I said, this book deals with big problems while dealing with being popular and liking the unattainable girl.

I would recommend this to middle school students who are affected by the war. I'm thinking Ft. Meade and Aberdeen are schools that should have several copies on hand. Also, Justin starts playing the piano and it helps him deal with his stressful life. This is also one that I would recommend to music majors.

[Austin Moody · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Big Nothing by Adrian Fogelin is about a boy named Justin. His dad just up and left for Atlanta after being accused of cheating by Justin's mom. That's just one of Justin's problems. Another one is about the war in Iraq. If the war happens (this book is written in the past) his brother is going to probably go over to Iraq.

Adrian Fogelin uses many emotions in The Big Nothing ranging from anger to fear to happiness. Writing the book in Jason's point of view you get all of his emotion. This starts out as anger at his dad.

When Jason starts to play the piano he is either playing it at another kid's house or using his brother's keyboard that doesn't work. He writes to his brother every day. He can't wait for Duane (his brother)to call. Especially while he's overseas.

I would give this 3 stars out of 5. It is a good book but it makes you want more when it ends. I really don't know what type of book to say this is.

Will Jason's dad come back? Has Jason's dad been cheating? Will Duane be okay? Read The Big Nothing to find out.

[Siena Mccollum]

The book The Big Nothing was about a teen boy named Justin. Justin's parents always fight then one day Justin's father leaves, and this time for good. So he must take care of his mother because she is not taking the split well. Justin must learn how to pay the bills and make the meals. He's under a lot of pressure and the fact that his brother, Duane, is fighting the war in Iraq makes it all worse. Justin finds an escape by playing the piano. He learns to play from his neighbor Nana Grace, and he uses her piano. He starts to get comfortable and begins exploring new keys, he eventually writes a song for his crush, Jemmie. But Justin is too shy to play it for her. This book shows how Justin is put under enormous pressure to take care of his mother and he must adapt to always put her first. He learns to mature much quicker so he can live a somewhat normal. Overall I thought this book what good and interesting but also quite depressing.

[Taylor Cook · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book started off very interesting, and I was hooked. However, about a quarter of the way though, I started to lose interest. This was due to the story moving along very slowly. While this may be interesting to some people, I think part of what turned me away was that this was a story about middle school children, told from the point of view from a teenage boy. So, any time a girl was mentioned, the boy would put himself down but at the same time go into what he thought about all the girls, when they were pretty and what not and I was just not interested in being inside a teenage boy's head. The ending was also not satisfying because there was nothing but a stronger friendship between the main character and a special girl instead of a romantic relationship, which is how I feel the book should have ended. I personally thought the story was well written, it just could have been shorter, but I would not recommend it to other girls.

[Alicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

A look at family dynamics and the Iraq War, this book has something for everyone to get attached to, whether it's Justin, his parents, his friend, the piano, or the idea that there is so much pressure in life. Everything is real and you will be entertained by the dynamism of the characters.

Maybe it's the folded hands, maybe it's the fact that she is so not-eating that I'm getting scared- but I insist that we say grace. If there's a God out there, and if He's actually interested, now might be a good time to get His attention; we could use a little help.

[Tay · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't give an unbiased review of this book because it is very important to me. Prior to reading it I was a sci-fi sort of person and wanted to write that sort of fiction growing up. However, the way this book makes the lives of characters who can be anyone in our day to day lives gripping and such a realistic story touching made me aspire to be a realistic fiction writer. Maybe this book won't change your life like it changed mine when I was a preteen, but it's a nice book in which a lot is going on beneath the surface.

[Miracle Stewart · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book I read was Written by Adrian Fogelin the name of the story is The Big Nothing .The main characters are Justin, Mom,Duane,Dad and Jemmie Lewis. I would recommend this book to age group of 13-16.I liked the book because it is really relatable to certain things especially in the home .The main settings of this story are In the home of Justin, the neighborhood and the school. The main conflicts of the story are justin has went to the marines his mom and dad have split up but not divorced and also having a crush on jemmie I really liked this book.

[Mary Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author's use of language is refreshing. The topic is frustrating because you question how parents can be so oblivious of the needs of their children while they're so wrapped in their own wants and needs. This is an excellent 'ray of sunshine' for those students who are faced with parents who have a marriage falling apart mixed in with other family troubles, plus the demands of finding one's own identity during that time frame known as adolescence. Well written and pulls at our compassion. Everyone would benefit having a Granny Grace in their lives, and a perceptive teacher.

[Monique · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the first few pages to the last sentence, this book sucked me in. I wasn't expecting much, but this too-real story was more than the title or description set it for. Language sometimes got annoyingly vulgar, and Jemmie was definitely my favorite character. I realize now, that alot of things weren't resolved, but the ending as so perfect for this book, you don't really care about the other stuff too much. Another one of those author's who persuade you to keep reading with their writing.

[Lily_E1 · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Big Nothing by Adrain Fogelin follows the life of a young teen struggling with a father who left home, a brother in the army, and a depressed mother who finds happiness through music. This realistic fiction novel deals with the idea that happiness can be found in the most unlikely circumstances through finding interests. People interested in a sad coming of age story should read this book.

[Meg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wish I could give a book 3 1/2 stars. This is a light read. It is entertaining and the reader feels for the main character in all of his struggles. However, there is no great epiphany... just the pains of growing up and dealing with family issues. Entertaining, but...

[Shelby · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was ok. I didn't picture the characters at all how they actually were.

[Seth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book. The characters had so much voice, and I loved the end!

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this book, although the ending was left very open ended. I very much desire closure and this book left me hoping for a sequel.

[Michelle White]

I didn't enjoy this book. I found it hard to read, although I would keep it in the classroom for student's to read at their pleasure. I got it from the IUS Library.

[Cindy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book. I used it for a project. Climax is kind of hard to determine, becuase of the other little dilemmas that take place in the story, a little predicatble, but a good book.

[Chelle𓆏 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Soundtrack:

Under Construction by Jerry Martin
Buying Lumber by Jerry Martin

[Berwald ~I Have Moved Accounts~]

Abbandoned.

[Tristan Ng · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like how that the book shows an family issue of family issues. It was a really good book because then it really shows the problem then to tell

[Mya Shelton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book was amazing. It's just, soo good! The big nothing is now my favorite book.