Genre: Fantasy
Age Level: 14 and up
# of pages: 275
Award Winner: 2007 Iowa Teen Award
RAC Book: Yes
Fifteen year old Liz Hall is riding her bike to meet her friend at the mall when she is hit by a car and killed. Liz goes to Elsewhere, which is the afterlife in this book. In Elsewhere Liz meets her grandmother, who died before she was born and many other people who have also died. Despite all the help she is offerred, Liz has a difficult time adjusting to life in Elsewhere. She spends all of her time at the “observation deck” where she becomes obsessed with watching her family and friends all day long. Eventually, Liz realizes that life does go on, just in a different way on Elsewhere and she needs to accept it and move on. She finds a job and begins to learn about what life will be like for her while she is in Elsewhere. There are still a few matters of unfinished business that Liz must take care of, however, which leads to trouble since contact with humans is strictly prohibited.
Elsewhere provides an interesting idea of what the afterlife could be like. Zevin creates a unique place in which people and animals can converse and people get younger instead of older. This book could spark insightful discussions with students about what they found most interesting or most difficult to understand. The afterlife is something that no one can know for sure about, but this story provides a scenario that could lead students to ponder and evaluate their own beliefs.
Young Adult Book Reviews 
