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Friend Is Not a Verb

3.11 of 5 stars 3.11 · rating details · 229 ratings · 52 reviews

You know things are bad when your dreams come with a washed-up '80s soundtrack

Henry "Hen" Birnbaum's sister, Sarah, missing for over a year, has come home unexpectedly, with no explanation at all. But he can't leave well enough alone; Hen needs to figure out why she disappeared, even if she won't tell him. It's not like he has anything better to do. His girlfriend just dum...more

Hardcover, 256 pages

Published May 4th 2010 by HarperTeen

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2010 YA novels (part 2)

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Amy and Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson

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May 31, 2013 Sara rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2013, young-adult

3.5 stars. Henry ("Hen") has dreams of becoming a big rock star, narrating his own life with the kind of melodramatic voice found in old episodes of "Behind the Music". His sister disappeared a year ago and no one knows why, but she suddenly reappears without explanation; his parents seem to know more than they're letting on but want the sister to tell Hen on her own terms. In the meantime, all anyone will say is that she's kind of a fugitive until certain things get sorted out. In the meantime,...more 3.5 stars. Henry ("Hen") has dreams of becoming a big rock star, narrating his own life with the kind of melodramatic voice found in old episodes of "Behind the Music". His sister disappeared a year ago and no one knows why, but she suddenly reappears without explanation; his parents seem to know more than they're letting on but want the sister to tell Hen on her own terms. In the meantime, all anyone will say is that she's kind of a fugitive until certain things get sorted out. In the meantime, Hen re-joins the band his ex-girlfriend kicked him out of, begins taking bass lessons from his sister's friend (who also won't tell Hen why they disappeared together), and tries to deal with oddness between himself and his best friend.

I loved the narration in this book. Hen's voice shone through and he was very funny and likable. I could have done without the occasional italicized narrations (ones in which he imagined how "Behind the Music" would describe the moment) but overall, his observations about life were great. He made a lot of nice observations, such as the difference between "friending" someone online and actually being a friend to someone. I also liked his comments about how witty someone could be in writing yet the same wittiness in person just made them seem like they were trying too hard. Everyone can relate to these observations, which was a big reason why Hen was so likable.

The missing sister plot intrigued me, and I had no idea where it was going. I kept reading on because I wanted to know why she'd disappeared, and it frustrated me (much like it frustrated Hen) that no one would explain anything yet he was expected to just deal with it. The author did a nice job of weaving details together in the end, making the entire story quite cohesive. I would have liked the ending to have been a little less sudden, but the story itself was good.

As a whole, this novel seemed to lack something - perhaps a deeper exploration of the brother/sister/family dynamic, perhaps a more developed subplot, or perhaps even a bigger main plot. There were so many little things I liked in this book - the characters themselves, the way reality didn't align with fantasy, the mystery behind what happened to Hen's sister and why she'd shown up again - but everything seemed only briefly touched upon, the story moved on, and then it all wrapped up quickly. The book was entertaining overall; I just wish there had been a little more to it.(less)

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Mar 04, 2013 Shelbie Butcher added it

The reason the author wrote "Friend is not a Verb" is because he wanted to describe a rock and roll, love relationship. The theme of this book is probably caring. The reason that the theme is caring is because after everything the Hen has went through in the end it is all about caring about the ones that you love. That is one of the main messages that this book send you.
The style that this book was written in was description. The reason it is considered a description is because it takes place...more

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May 06, 2012 Sara rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-fiction

Hen Birnbaum is an average high schooler who plays bass in his girlfriend’s band and spends lots of time watching VH1 with his neighbor. But his family is not quite as it seems — his older sister, Sarah, has been missing for a year. Though his parents seem to know something about what’s going on, they insist that Sarah needs to be the one to tell Hen. So when Sarah returns without a word of explanation and asks Hen to take bass lessons from her friend Gabriel, Hen is not sure how to handle thing...more

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Apr 29, 2011 Say rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: april-2011-reads

i always had the thing for geeky and nerdy guys, guys who is not worth another glance once you passed by them. but when you get to talk to them, you will ask yourself "you make so much sense." i thought henry "hen" (yes. like a rooster....har har!) was one of those guys. he being a music guru (well, more of the 80's and 90's) was cool but as the story goes i just couldnt like the guy. i dont know maybe it's just me but eventhough he has a wide expertise in music, i liked his friend emma more. or...more

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Sep 22, 2010 Adele rated it 3 of 5 stars

I am a shallow being. I freely admit to be as such as I purchased this book based on the title, cover art and the fact that it was authored by a man. Turns out that my puerile ways resulted in a great read told from a teen male perspective and a new (much needed) male YA author in my arsenal - not a bad day's work.

There are so many things to like about Ehrenhaft's exploration of a teen romance gone kaput, a friendship strained and a sister at a distance. Introspective, sensitive and quirky - the...more I am a shallow being. I freely admit to be as such as I purchased this book based on the title, cover art and the fact that it was authored by a man. Turns out that my puerile ways resulted in a great read told from a teen male perspective and a new (much needed) male YA author in my arsenal - not a bad day's work.

There are so many things to like about Ehrenhaft's exploration of a teen romance gone kaput, a friendship strained and a sister at a distance. Introspective, sensitive and quirky - the reader is taken on a journey where the character gradually shifts in his consciousness which affect his choices in turn. The voice of the character is so relatable and authentic that it is frighteningly easy to share his mind. He's sullen, oblivious, quick witted and slovenly - sometimes all in the same passage. The author really captured the contemporary teen male voice without playing to cliches or this female's perception of what a guy sounds like.

While many readers might gravitate to the romantic or friendship aspects of the novel, I found myself captured by the brother-sister dynamic presented. As an older sister the push and pull of Sarah and Hen's relationship really rang true to me. Boys aren't as outward in their feelings as their female counterparts and this is shown to great affect with the impact Sarah's disappearance (and return) have upon Hen. To the outside world he doesn't care - but that's anything but the truth. This segues nicely into Hen's bass playing and Gabe's impact on his musicality and growth as a son, brother and friend. It's quiet and beautifully realised.

Teen girls are crazy and it was quite amusing to see them at work from the laid back perspective of our protagonist. Whether it was the selfish manoeuvrings of Petra, Emily's personality 180 or Sarah's deliberate quash on enlightening Hen with any information whatsoever it is fun to see what rolled off his back and how much truly resonated. It is here that I had some concerns, at times the depiction of some of the secondary characters was a little light but never falling into caricature territory. The central problem of Sarah's disappearance is handled well in retrospect but when reading it felt a little anti-climatic. There is also a sub plot involving dogs that felt extraneous but I could also argue that most things you do during the summer are immaterial.

The voice is fun...even when mocking Journey and the pudgy kid from Dawson's Creek (oh no you didn't mock my Pacey). It moves quickly with Hen envisioning his life retold as part of the now defunct MTV Behind the Scenes. Ehrenhaft smoothly navigates the many intermingling subplots and Hen's growing awareness with humour, perceptiveness and some catchy dialogue.

A contemporary tale about a guy, his bass, the girl next door, his self-absorbed ex and his MIA sister that has its hand on its heart, crotch and funny bone. (less)

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Feb 21, 2010 Katie M. rated it 2 of 5 stars

Ugh.
This book was... well, I guess I'll just start with positives.
For starters, I loved all of the pop culture that was put into this book. There was mention of seventies, present, and so much about the nineties that I appreciated (I really think I should have been 16 in the nineties instead of now.. or the mid-late sixties.. but back to the topic!)I have a tendency to get really excited when things that I know or like are thrown into a book, and that's probably where most of the appeal was...more

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May 22, 2010 Falling Off The Shelf rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-2010

This review was originally posted on my review blog : http://fallingoffthehself.blogspot.com

Henry "Hen" Birnbaum has been going through a lot this year, and it hasn't all affected him for the better. When his sister Sarah first ran away a year ago, it really tore him up. All he knew was that she did something she wasn't supposed to do, and was now a fugitive of the law. His own parents won't even give him the run-down on what his sister has done, although they know perfectly well what it was. Ne...more This review was originally posted on my review blog : http://fallingoffthehself.blogspot.com

Henry "Hen" Birnbaum has been going through a lot this year, and it hasn't all affected him for the better. When his sister Sarah first ran away a year ago, it really tore him up. All he knew was that she did something she wasn't supposed to do, and was now a fugitive of the law. His own parents won't even give him the run-down on what his sister has done, although they know perfectly well what it was. Needless to say, Hen is tired of being considered a child, he's 16-years old now, and has the right to know some things.

The night his sister decides to return to the family, Hen's life gets worse. His girlfriend, and the leader of their band PETRA, breaks up with him in the middle of the rain, and then continues to boot him from his position as the band's bass player. It's okay though, because he never really could play the bass very well anyway. When he arrives home and finds a note from his parents claiming they've gone to pick up his sister Sarah, Hen can't believe it. He can't decide whether he's truly happy to see his sister, or still infuriated with her for leaving without even saying good-bye.

Things between him and Sarah are weird now, especially since she still won't tell him what's going on. When her friend and fellow fugitive, Gabriel Stern, offers to give him bass lessons, Hen decides to take them in hopes that Gabe will slip up and tell him what is going on. Instead it seems Gabe is more worried about Hen admitting to feelings towards his best friend, Emily Wood, that he's not even sure are really there. Emily has always been next door, and she knows just about everything about him, but can there be more to their relationship than Hen thinks?

I really liked Hen's character from the very first page. He may have been a little depressing at times, but he was extremely quick-witted and had the tendency to make me giggle. I could understand why Hen was angry at his sister Sarah for leaving, and then returning without giving him an inkling toward her reasons. On the other hand, I think he could have been a little more happy to see her, especially if he missed her as much as he claimed.

There was a lot of characters in this book, and believe it or not, despite how short it is you learn a lot about each and everyone of them. My favorite character was probably Emily, even though there were a few times that I wanted to wring her neck because of the things she was doing. She was all around good-hearted, and despite some of the things she did, they were always for the benefit of others.

My least favorite character was Petra, the ex-girlfriend. She wasn't really that bad actually, but it seemed that if you weren't cool, she wanted nothing from you. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree though, if you ask me, because her father wasn't really any better. Both characters are nice to those around them, but in the limelight of things you feel like your just not up to their standards the more you read about them.

The mystery of Hen's missing sister hovered over this entire plot, while it wasn't always front and center. Hen almost always had it on his mind, despite the fact that he tried his hardest to just leave it alone. The funny thing is, the answer to the mystery was in front of both Hen's, and the readers face the whole time, you just didn't know it. I was completely surprised when I found out Sarah's story at the end of this book, and actually slapped my knee because I was too silly to figure it out earlier on.

All around this was a great book. You learn a lot about Hen, and his friends. Despite the lack of appearance from his sister, Sarah, she is one of the main focus points of this novel. Even though you get to watch Hen grow as a teenager, and learn more about himself and those around him, you still find yourself wondering what his sister could have done to get herself into so much trouble. I'll more than likely be reading more books by Daniel Ehrenhaft in the future, because I loved his writing. I even liked that it was narrated from Hen's point of view. I'm usually not into books narrated by male characters, but his one was written perfectly, and it made me feel like I really knew Hen, sometimes better than he knew himself.(less)

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Aug 12, 2010 Brandi rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2010, teen, random-reads-column, librandian-blog

Everything changed after Hen’s sister Sarah disappeared a year ago. No one knows where or why she went, but there are speculations everywhere that she is in some kind of trouble. Since his sister vanished, Hen has fallen in love (he thinks), played the bass guitar in his girlfriend, Petra’s, band (subpar, at best), and managed ridiculously paranoid parents (he’s not going to run away, you know). Now everything is slowly crumbling to Hen’s feet. Petra dumped him and kicked him out of the band lea...more Everything changed after Hen’s sister Sarah disappeared a year ago. No one knows where or why she went, but there are speculations everywhere that she is in some kind of trouble. Since his sister vanished, Hen has fallen in love (he thinks), played the bass guitar in his girlfriend, Petra’s, band (subpar, at best), and managed ridiculously paranoid parents (he’s not going to run away, you know). Now everything is slowly crumbling to Hen’s feet. Petra dumped him and kicked him out of the band leaving his social life an empty void except for his best friend Emma and the addictive VH1 Behind the Music marathons. Right when Hen is getting settled in his new, slightly boring life, he comes home to an empty house with only a note stating that Sarah had returned. His parents refuse to acknowledge the fact that Sarah had been missing for a year and life continues on as it had before she left. The worst part is no one will tell Hen where she was or why she was gone, but he’s positive that his parents know everything.

With the reemergence of Sarah comes the paranoid artist, Gabriel Stern. Gabriel was apparently with Sarah while she was gone and is now trying to become a part of Hen’s life as well. When Gabriel offers to teach Hen how to play the bass better, Hen agrees with the hopes that Gabriel will shed some light on the last year of Sarah’s life. On top of some sneaking around Gabriel’s apartment, Hen finds a few new activities to keep him busy. Hen gets a part-time job walking dogs for some very wealthy women. He is also invited to join back up with Petra and her band for a very important gig. Can Hen juggle everything after having a boring, uneventful life?

A down-to-earth story, Friend is not a Verb mirrors the real lives of teenagers fairly accurately. Hen is a likeable character with the habit of narrating his life like an announcer for a biographical TV show. One of the only negative thoughts I have about this book refers to the cover. A boy and a girl holding hands is not a good representation for this book and I fear it will turn guys away. Don’t believe the cover! Pick it up today!
(less)

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Oct 02, 2010 Liza rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: bfya2011, young-adult

I really wanted to like this book more than I did. Ehrenhaft created an interesting premise, but then followed it up with a very whiny protagonist. In fact, I enjoyed the side story of Hen's missing sister more than I did his own story.

The humor and New York City setting were fun and enjoyable, and the story is definitely edgier than the lame-o cover advertises. In fact, if I were Ehrenhaft, I'd be very ticked off about the cover.

I can see some teens enjoying this book, and then promptly forgett...more

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Oct 04, 2010 Lady Knight rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: e-book, contemporary, teen, americas, online-library

I initially picked this up based on many reviews in the Blogosphere listing it as a great read, and was very pleasantly surprised to see that this novel about a teenage guy is actually written by a guy! It's not often that I come across contemporary teen fiction with a male author and it's a nice change to read. That said however, I was a little disappointed with the way Emma is portrayed in one scene (which I won't spoil), but I thought he painted her as far to traditionally 'girly', especially...more

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Jun 03, 2010 Nick rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult-fiction

I couldn't put this book down. I did find the payoff to be a little weak, in that the the reader is never given any fair clues to the "mystery" subplot, and the extra money at the end didn't quite make sense. [A house in the Dominican Republic selling for that much money???:] The main story was a lot of fun...even if the band Journey isn't as bad as the main character thinks, but I have to agree that it's a little weird to hear them with their new lead singer.
The title may have misled some reade...more

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Jun 06, 2010 Kimberly rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2010, young-adult

This was a fun, quick read. Nothing ground-breaking, and the multitude of pop culture references will date it very quickly. The wrap-up of the missing sister at the end was really odd...I didn't really buy it. But the suspense kept me reading, and the dialogue was mostly very good.

HOWEVER, the protagonists hate Journey and refer to the band as only being liked by their middle-aged parents and others like them. Seriously? EVERYONE likes Journey! Am I wrong? Don't teenagers still like Journey? Am...more

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Jun 15, 2010 Lena ♫ ♪ rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: did-not-finish, arcs

I just could not get into this book. I tried, I really did, but after 100 some-odd-pages, I just had to call a quits.

The protag, Hen, got on my nerves. I don't know why exactly. Maybe it was the excessive whining and rambling about his rock star dreams. Or the attempt at emotions which didn't register to me as realistic. Or maybe it was the(random statements) (placed in parentheses) (which can be very distracting to the story/plot).

All and all, this just wasn't the book for me. Now, keep in min...more

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Dec 03, 2010 Shannon rated it 3 of 5 stars

I am not a huge fan of the teen angst book genre, which is how I would describe this book. I struggle to find a reason to care about characters who's lives seem so different than mine, unless they are altered (by magic or time or something) to a point where it becomes another world. I don't care much for current adult contemporary books either. Stories of dysfunctional families and more urban or trendy lifestyles are hard for me to get into.

I guess that is why this book was just an okay read tha...more

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Sep 16, 2010 Erica Leigh rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2010, library, young-adult

Liked it at first,
and then it just didn't
have a plot anymore.

The first half is great!
Fast-paced, cleverly written,
interesting characters...

but then, I don't know.
I stopped caring about any of
them after a while. None of the
characters or conversations were
realistic.

Hen is a big whiner and wants to be
a rock star...and that's what he talks
about for more than half the book.

The ending is cheesy, too.
Oh, and the "big reveal" of the reason
behind Hen's sister's disappearance is
really dumb. Not believabl...more

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May 30, 2010 Claire rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: high-school-and-beyond

Fun read.Lots of Drama. Hen(ry)narrates a year or so. His sister has mysteriously disappeared, reappeared - no explanation - and now disappeared again. He plays bass in a rock trio, taking lessons from a friend of his missing sister. He is hoping to get some kind of intelligence on where his sister might be and what she is doing. He has been going with Petra, but what is it with Emma? Will they get an agent for their band? Will he discover what is going on with his sister?
Mystery, romance, and 9...more

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Oct 22, 2010 Krish rated it 4 of 5 stars

Hen's sister, Sarah, has mysteriously disappeared with a pack of her friends, and no one will tell him why. The police are looking for her, because she's committed some crime. Hen misses Sarah because she was a buffer between him and his overprotective parents. He's a bass player in his ex-girlfriend's band, PETRA, his best friend is the girl next door, Emma, and his life is in shambles. This book crosses the genre lines and is part mystery, part romance and part coming of age story. Set in New...more

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May 31, 2013 Gisbelle rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: annoying, contemporary, high-school, romance, young-adult, ya-contemporary, stand-alone

The book started out with Henry, aka Hen, being dumped by a popular girl. It was okay. Just okay. I liked Hen at first and thought he was kinda funny. As I read more, I couldn't understand Hen. At all. He was all over the place. I didn't think there was a single serious bone in his body.

Not only Hen, the book itself was all over the place. I'm generally into books that keep me on my toes. But a girl can only take so much guessing. It was frustrating when the author threw in that many questions w...more

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May 23, 2011 Nicole added it

Shelves: ya-contemporary

I'm tackling my books-that-are-smaller-than-the-first-Harry-Potter-book pile. I started with Lark and moved on to this one; this is another small one that packs a whollop of a good story into a fast read.

Henry may have become one of my favorite protagonists to read through the eyes of of. He manages to complain without being whiny, think deeply without trying to appear intentionally philosophical, and make sarcastic or ironic jokes without ever breaking character. He's got the head of most of my...more

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Aug 10, 2010 Jessica rated it 2 of 5 stars

Let's start with the positives shall we? I always like to get off on a good foot. This book is pretty funny. Plain and simple there are parts in this book where I found myself laughing out loud, "Hen" or Henry, the main character, is witty and ridiculous at times. He tends to surround himself with other characters of the same magnitude, and watching them interact with one another can be pretty hilarious.

I also very much enjoyed the multiple pop culture references in the story, especially Henry's...more Let's start with the positives shall we? I always like to get off on a good foot. This book is pretty funny. Plain and simple there are parts in this book where I found myself laughing out loud, "Hen" or Henry, the main character, is witty and ridiculous at times. He tends to surround himself with other characters of the same magnitude, and watching them interact with one another can be pretty hilarious.

I also very much enjoyed the multiple pop culture references in the story, especially Henry's love for the 90's and all the nostalgia there within. Bands, television shows, it was all there in its truly cheesy 90's glory. Truthfully I began to get a little peeved near the end at how many times Facebook was mentioned, however I know this to be true to life. I can't count how many times I've been at a bar and heard that word thrown around. Yes, it's pop culture and yes it's here to stay. Daniel Ehrenhaft's mention of these items did help me form a connection with the characters as I read.

However this is where my love for the book ended. Although I found Henry to be funny at times, I mainly found him to be awkward and obnoxious. His incessant side notes to himself (set off like this) throughout the book were endearing at first, and then became extremely distracting. Henry's sole focus in this story was to be a rock star, and it seemed to me like it was a little forced. He knew he wasn't good at bass, and yet he continued to convince himself that that was what he needed to be happy. In Henry's mind, stardom = money = happiness and I just couldn't get behind that. Maybe it's just me, but I really thought he could have directed his confusion and family angst into something more worthwhile.

As for his sister Sarah and her story, the entire first half of the story had me wondering out loud when I was going to get to find anything out about her disappearance. There were no clues, no hints, her parents didn't even seem fazed when she showed up out of nowhere. I was also so frustrated at how uncaring she seemed and how distant. She was Henry's sister after all, doesn't that afford them some kind of confidence? As the book neared the end and I finally unraveled the mystery behind Sarah's disappearance, I began to wonder why it was all such a big deal. Why couldn't Henry's parents have shared that with him? It just seemed like extremely poor parenting to me.

Overall this was a book that just irked me too much to really appreciate it. There were high points and low points, but sadly the things I disliked really weighed in strongly. More than once I had to resist simply giving up on reading this book, and that made me sad. It's not often that I find a book I have that much trouble reading. I think that this book has great potential, but that the quirkiness makes it a difficult read. Perhaps there are those out there who will think differently than me and if so, great!
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Feb 02, 2011 Jacquelyn rated it 4 of 5 stars

A decent book. About a teenage boy, whose sister ran away over a year before the book begins. His parents know where she is and why she left, but no one will talk to him about it. Then the missing sister comes home, adding to the mystery.
Well written, the voice of the narrator is pretty true to life. A few quirks in the book led me to skim some parts (they were written in italics so I knew when they were coming).
Fortunately everything is explained and wrapped up nicely in the end.

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Jan 13, 2011 Joanne rated it 3 of 5 stars

The writing was different than I'm used to. Sometimes this bothered me, but for the most part it was nice to read something a little different. I wasn't able to guess what the big revelation at the end was going to be, but I wasn't very surprised to find out what it was. The rest of the story seemed fairly predictable. I'm glad I read this book because I usually read book that are from the female perspective and it's nice to read something from a male perspective sometimes.

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Apr 03, 2012 Natali.D (BookCupid) rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: contemporary

Hen Birnbaum's summer couldn't be any more stressful. His girlfriend broke up with him just as his sister came back after a yearlong disappearance. To make matters worse, his ex wants him to remain in the band and his sister refuses to tell him why she left and is currently wanted by the police.

Although I did like Hen, I found him so overly patient at times that I had to put the book down. And yet I kept coming back to it, desperate to know what would happen in the end.

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Aug 15, 2010 Jennifer rated it 3 of 5 stars

Cute read, I really liked Henry (aka Hen) and his dealing with a lot of blows during his life, missing sister, no band or girlfriend, and wack-a-doo parents. But, the ending and the much held back reasons for his sister's disappearance was pretty darn lackluster once we found out the reasoning and didn't seem a big deal to keep from Hen (and the reader) for 98% of the book. Plus, the coupling at the end, pretty much expected. How can you not when you have best buds of the opposite sex. Still a c...more

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May 06, 2011 Krista Basilio rated it 4 of 5 stars

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Jun 12, 2011 Virginia rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult, read-2011

*sigh* Where did I get this recommendation? I knew within the first chapter that I wouldn't like this story. Instead, I slogged through because I knew it wouldn't take more than an hour or two to get through. The protagonist was annoying and Emma is the only person I liked. I guess there were some interesting plot points, but other than that, blech.

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Mar 20, 2011 Karen rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-or-mg-reads, at-bjhs

Very clever book - a little mystery, a little romance, a little adventure. I loved all the 90's references - that was my favorite part of the book. Unfortunately, I think they would fly right over the heads of most of my students. I'm trying to read more books with male protagonists, and I'm going to check out more by this author.

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Jul 11, 2010 Hat of Nikitich rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction

I couldn't invest myself in this. I took issue with how self-conscious and dry the narrative was. You could argue that's a stylistic choice, given the character and his point of view -- and you'd be right -- but I didn't feel like it was executed with any real charm or grace.

That said, it was fairly cute.

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Jan 31, 2010 Lisa rated it 2 of 5 stars

The title made me think this book would be about social networking, but unfortunately this was not so. It is more about a kid in a 90's nostalgia band and the reasons his sister has disappeared. Dissapointingly this mystery is wrapped up in the final chapter, but there were no substantial clues along the way.

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Sep 15, 2010 Brandon Folio rated it 3 of 5 stars

Friend is Not a Verb is about a 16 year old boy named Hen who is having band drama, and girl drama while his sister has gone completely missing. This book was great at the beginning and was very interesting. As it got towards the middle I started losing interest, and it got very boring and stayed boring. Overall the book was okay. I recommend this book to people who like realistic stories, and drama stories. I wouldn't recommend this book to people who like exciting, and action packed stories.

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About Daniel Ehrenhaft

Daniel Ehrenhaft is the author of several dozen books for children and young adults—so many books, in fact, that he has lost count. He has often written under the pseudonym Daniel Parker (his middle name, which is easier to spell and pronounce than his last), and occasionally Erin Haft. He lives in Brooklyn with his wife Jessica, as well as a scruffy dog named Gibby and a psychotic cat named Boots...more

More about Daniel Ehrenhaft...

Books by Daniel Ehrenhaft

Drawing a Blank: Or How I Tried to Solve a Mystery, End a Feud, and Land the Girl of My Dreams

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Quotes from Friend Is Not a Verb

“There she stood. Dark circles ringed her eyes. Her face was pale, almost snow-white. She probably hadn't slept, either. She was still wearing the same dress. Her hair looked like a bomb had gone off. She was beautiful.” — 7 people liked it

“When we were little kids, 'friend' wasn't a verb. You didn't 'friend' someone. You had friends. It was only a noun. It didn't multitask. It was a simpler time, Hen.” — 6 people liked it

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BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7091475-friend-is-not-a-verb?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1257815232l/7091475.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7091475-friend-is-not-a-verb?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Friend Is Not a Verb by Daniel Ehrenhaft[/url]

Friend Is Not a Verb

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