Why We Took the Car

A beautifully written, darkly funny coming-of-age story from an award-winning, bestselling German author.

Mike Klingenberg isn't exactly one of the cool kids at his school. For one, he doesn't have many friends. (Okay, zero friends.) And everyone laughs when he has to read his essays out loud in class And he's never, ever invited to parties - especially not the party of the year, thrown by the gorgeous Tatiana. Andre Tschichatschow, aka Tschick (not even the teachers can pronounce his name), is new in school, and unpopular as well, but in a completely different way. He always looks like he's just been in a fight, he sleeps through nearly every class, and his clothes are tragic. But one day, out of the blue, Tschick shows up at Mike's house. It turns out he wasn't invited to Tatiana's party either, and he's ready to do something about it. Forget the popular kids ? together, Mike and Tschick are heading out on a road trip across Germany. No parents, no map, no destination. Will they get hopelessly lost in the middle of nowhere? Probably. Will they make bad decisions, meet some crazy people, and get into trouble? Definitely. But will anyone ever call them boring again? Not a chance. 'By no means a wholesome story, Why We Took the Car is exuberant and without a mean bone in its narrative ... The liveliness and charm of the two boys carry the reader along, until at last Mike taps into the real lessons of the road- that it never ends.' -Peter Behrens, The New York Times Book Review 'Surprising, tender and deliciously absurd ... a funny, poignant, and intermittently profane and raunchy novel.' -The Wall Street Journal 'Buckle your seat belt. You're in for a bumpy, exhilarating ride ... in this lively bildungsroman, rich with funny, poignant riffs on nicknames, boomerangs, Beyonce, ageing and the possibility of life on other planets.' -The Washington Post

Ideal for readers interested in reading.