Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, by Jesse Andrews, introduces us to Greg S. Gaines, 17-year-old senior at Benson High School in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Greg is also the narrator of the novel. Over the course of his educational career, he has diligently developed a system that allows him to survive the daily pandemonium of life in high school. He maintains a surface-level, friendly-but-not-too-friendly connection to every clique in school so that he can remain virtually invisible and, therefore, safe.

The only person Greg risks some connection to is Earl, who he thinks of more as a co-worker than friend. He and Earl meet in kindergarten and eventually make over forty films together, none of which Greg permits anyone else to see. To admit that he is a filmmaker would disallow Greg’s ability to float in and out of all social groups, forcing him to give up his general likability.

Further amplifying Greg’s social anxiety is his long-standing inability to talk to girls. After several well-meaning but failed attempts at dating during middle school, Greg effectively gives up on ever having a girlfriend. He convinces himself that he prefers his system of avoidance because it grants him a painless existence in an otherwise chaotic world.