Twitch, Jerk, Freak—He’s Been Called Them All

Twitch. Jerk. Freak. Sam Carrier has been called them all. Because of his Tourette’s Syndrome, Sam is in near constant motion with tics and twitches and verbal outbursts. So, of course, high school is nothing but torment. Forget friends; forget even hoping that beautiful, perfect Naomi will look his way. And home isn’t much better with his domineering stepfather reminding him that the only person who was more useless than Sam was his dead father, James.

An unexpected turn of events unearths the truth about Sam’s father. And suddenly Sam doesn’t know who he is, or even where he’ll go next. What he does know is that the only girl in the world who can make him happy and nervous at the same time is everywhere he turns … and he’d give anything to just be still.

Author Jonathan Friesen claims he spent a lifetime trying not to tell this story. Not because it didn’t need to be told, but because it contains so many elements of his own thirty-year fight with Tourette’s. “In a real sense, this story, this condition, is my own heart-shaped beach ball jammed underwater. I hoped to hide it—hoped no one would notice. Thankfully, I lost my grip, and my heart popped into the light for all to see.”

“Although Sam’s story is completely fictitious, his internal struggle with Tourette’s Syndrome mirrors my own quite closely,” says Friesen. “The agonies and victories portrayed in the book are brutally honest, and together paint a picture of a young man desperate to discover how to live and love inside a constantly jerking body.”

But for all of the author’s life that fills the pages, the greater story in the book is as universal as hope itself. Sam discovers his core problem is not his body-racking disorder, or even the girl who consumes his thoughts; it’s the deceased father who lays claim to his heart.

Like so many teens, Sam realizes he can’t know who he is until he settles the question of whose he is. His answer, and the life-change that results, makes this book so important for young readers. As teens walk their own paths, it’s time that they reclaim their true names.

Penguin Group (USA) releases Jerk, California on September 4, 2008, with an initial print run of 40,000 copies. The novel’s subject matter lends itself to book club discussion, and a discussion guide is included in the book. The author has written a teacher’s guide for the novel, which will be made available online.

About the Author

Jonathan Friesen is an award-winning author, speaker, and writing coach who received the diagnosis of Tourette’s Syndrome later in life. He is not alone—TS or its symptoms affect several members of his family. Jonathan currently serves on the board of the Minnesota Tourette’s Syndrome Association. His personal experience with Tourette’s inspired him to write Jerk, California.

A fourteen-year public school teacher and writing instructor at the University of Minnesota, Jonathan shares his passion for writing with children of all ages—including three of his own, whom he home-schools. He is an author with a teacher’s heart, passionate to guide young writers on their writing journeys. A school presenter and trusted writing mentor, Jonathan founded WriteHomeStudio out of his desire to raise up writers of excellence. 

When he’s not writing, teaching, traveling, or coaching gifted young writers, Jonathan hangs out with his family on a small farm in central Minnesota.

To learn more about Jonathan Friesen, visit his Web site at www.jonathanfriesen.com.

Author Available for Interview/Book Available for Review

Writing Contest Incentives Challenge Young Adult Writers

Jonathan Friesen announces a writing contest—Reclaim the Name—for teens and young adults, inspired by the novel Jerk, California. The contest is open to young writers of all genres. Entrants will compete in one of two categories: ages 15 and younger or ages 16 to 20. Top prizes include $1,000 cash, four months of personal writer’s coaching, winner’s story published on author’s Web site, and a professional audio recording of the winner’s story to use as the winner wishes. The winner in the older age group will receive all of the above plus a skilled literary agent will provide a review/critique. For submission guidelines and other information, visit www.jonathanfriesen.com.