Zero

By: Tom Leveen

Narrated by: Jillian Yetter

It's the '90s! Not everyone's heard of Nirvana yet, and audiotapes are barely outdated. The live music scene is alive and well, and bands still make things like "demo tapes" and "albums." Were you there?

After missing her best opportunity to attend a prestigious art school, 17-year-old Salvador Dali devotee Zero begins dating Mike, a drummer in an up-and-coming punk band. As their tentative relationship blooms, Zero confronts a ton of baggage holding her back from her art career: the majorly awkward drama with her former best friend, Jenn; her dad's excessive drinking and parents' ongoing fights; and one formerly successful art teacher who might just hold the keys to her future, or smash Z's hopes forever.

When Mike's band gets a chance of lifetime to bust out of black hole that is Metro Phoenix, Zero must make a life-altering decision and answer the one question we all face at some point in our lives:

Follow your own heart, or the heart of the one you love?

Zero was an ALA/YALSA (Young Adult Library Services Association) Best Book of 2013.

*This audiobook contains mature content and may not be suitable for all listeners.*

©2012 Tom Leveen (P)2019 Tom Leveen

An enthusiastic, emotional YA

Young adult, coming-of-age story, dealing wih family, friends, & future. Touches on feelings of anxiety, angst, love, fun, insecurity, excitement in a very real way. Narration was very appropriate across the cast of characters. I really enjoyed everything about this.

#audiobookobsessionreviewer

artist meet rocker

This as an angsty coming of age story. Amanda/Zero always wanted to study art. She studies and is obsessed with the works of Salvadore Dali.
Right now, her life is in chaos. She wasn't going to the college of her choice, her dad's been drinking more, she had a fight with her best friend, her professor let her down, and she has her first real relationship. which is something new to her.
Mike, a laid back guy, is in an indie band, plays small gigs around town. Mike thoughts are making a it big with the band but thats only a dream. He knows the expectations are slim. But for now he will enjoy the ride and whatever comes their way.
Tom Leveen goes into depth, the thoughts, conflicts, that are in Zero's head. Her sarcastic attitude is based on all the emotional, turmoil in her life. It would be great continuation, if the author would write a sequel about 5 years later, to see how their choices they made affected their lives.
Jillian Yetter is a new narrator for me. She captures the sarcastic personality of Zero, the laid back persona of Mike, and the others to perfection. I enjoyed listening to this story.
🎧audiobookobsessionreviewer🎧

Angsty coming of age novel

This was an angsty YA coming of age novel. There were elements of both the plot development and the main character's internal dialogue that I felt were oversold or poorly chosen. Certainly a bit of a male gaze influencing the choices and development. I enjoyed this, but was personally kind of conflicted in doing so.

#AudiobookObsessionReviewer

Awesome Book!

I loved every single thing about this entire book. It made me feel so much.

Angsty YA perfect for modern teens or adults missing their youth

This book is punk rock. I read it years ago and once I saw there was a new audio book I knew I needed to re-read, I mean listen. The narrator kills it and perfectly gets Tom Leveen’s prose and dialogue that always bites.

An Exceptional YA Novel!

This was a very well done YA novel and Zero was a great character with real struggles and issues that most anyone can or does relate to! a fantastic narrator as well that captured zero's personality perfectly as well. Definitely a recommended read!

Best book ever.

I’ve loved this book for as long as I can remember, it’s the rust book at made me feel something, as a lover of both music and art this book... gah THIS BOOK. Has taught me so much. And it is my most cherished read.

Here’s the thing

It’s just a book? Right ? No. It’s a work of Art.

Great YA Romance

Title: Zero
Author: Tom Leveen
Format: Audio
Narrator: Jillian Yetter
Genre: YA/NA, Coming of Age
Standalone: Yes
Part of a Series: No (at least I don't think so) but it could be
POV: Zero
Steam Level: Very little
5/5

I'm of two minds on this book. On the one hand I LOVED it. I liked the "adult" themes throughout the book. Zero dealt with a lot of hard issues that teens deal with. The good, the bad and the ugly. I kind of wish for a different ending but as the same time this ending makes sense for the characters. I'd love to revisit them in the future and see where everything went.

I received this audiobook for free from Audiobook Obsession. This is my honest and voluntary review.

Zero is amazing

Zero is not very happy with life right now. She's pissed at her besr friend, though she got in, she can't go to her dream school, her parents keep fighting, and everything just sucks. But when she meets the cute drummer of an up and coming band, things are finally looking up. Does having a boyfriend actually help though?

I love Zero! I really like her voice! She's just so unapologetic and so realistic. She reminded me of being a teen, loving bands, and just expressing myself in the most awkward way.

The flow of the story is so good too. The way Zero rises, falls, and rises again was just very good. Because that's just how real life is.

Not saying anything, I really like the way the book ended. It's the type where it's not just girls who read this can take something good from it.

This was such a good read!

*i received a free Audible copy of this book

Great narration

The narrator did a fantastic job bringing this book to life! The story kept my attention, but the narrator caught the true spirit of the characters.