Goodbye Days

By: Jeff Zentner

Narrated by: Michael Crouch

“Gorgeous, heartbreaking, and ultimately life-affirming,” says Nicola Yoon, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Everything, Everything and The Sun Is Also A Star, of this novel about finding strength and hope after tragedy. Perfect for fans of Me and Earl and the Dying Girl and Looking for Alaska.

Carver Briggs never thought a simple text would cause a fatal crash, killing his three best friends, Mars, Eli, and Blake. But now Carver can’t stop blaming himself for the accident and even worse, a powerful judge is pressuring the district attorney to open up a criminal investigation.

Luckily, Carver has some unexpected allies: Eli’s girlfriend, the only person to stand by him at school; Dr. Mendez, his new therapist; and Blake’s grandmother, who asks Carver to spend a “goodbye day” together to share their memories and say a proper farewell.

Soon the other families are asking for their own goodbye day with Carver—but he’s unsure of their motives. Will they all be able to make peace with their losses, or will these goodbye days bring Carver one step closer to a complete breakdown or—even worse—prison?

Includes the song “The Motion of the Earth” by Jeff Zentner, performed by Jeff Zentner and Elin Palmer


“One of the most stunningly heartfelt, lump-in-your-throat novels I’ve ever had the pleasure of reading. Hold on to your heart: this book will wreck you, fix you, and most definitely change you.” —Becky Albertalli, author of Morris Award winner Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda

“Tender, honest, moving, and lyrical. His characters live and breathe. Ahh, lucky me. Lucky us. Zentner is the real thing.” —Benjamin Alire Sáenz, winner of the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction and Printz Honor winning author of Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

Heartbreakingly written and voiced

This is the 2nd book I've read by this author, but the first I've listened to. His language is imaginitive, his characters lovable and imperfect. You feel you know them by the end of the story. The premise--the guilt of maybe being responsible for your best friends' deaths by texting the driver--is instantly gripping, but I was worried it would fall flat when developed. It did not. I was invested from beginning to end and the plot was heartbreaking and cathartic in turns. Carver deals with so much pain and confusion, and the adults & young people in his life help or hurt him in extremely realistic ways. I'll be recommending this to teens and adults alike because anyone who reads this will be emotionally challenged and matured by it.

Life can change in an instant

This book was on my granddaughter's summer reading list. I still don't understand today's youth, but with a few more books like this I may catch up. If only they would slow down and talk on the phone like normal people.

Wonderful Book

I work as a grief counselor and hospice chaplain and one of my colleagues selected this book for a book group that we hold on a regular basis. I both read the book and listened to the book. As always, I picked up different things in reading and in hearing the book. I think it’s a great book for adults, as well as for teens and young adults. Loved how real it was.

Makes you THINK

Who is responsible for a fatal crash? The person who texts or the recipient who answers while driving? Carver texts his friend, Mars, knowing he is driving but also knows that he is the friend who will text back the fastest. Carver loses his three best friends in one swift move. Legal issues arise but in the midst of these tragic moments two of the boy’s families request “goodbye days” with Carver to get to know the children they no longer have better. The other family wants restitution. This novel makes one think about how we text and react with others. “Goodbye Days” actually seem like a good idea.

The voices used wore thin on my nerves as well as the continued “cute, funny” teenage stories that really didn’t find my funny bone. I found them annoying.

how the crash happened

i really liked the book it had a good lesson to it and a good hook overall i think the only thing i disliked was how stretched it was