Restart

Book Detail

Restart is a 2017 standalone novel by best-selling children and young adult author Gordon Korman. The book follows protagonist Chase Ambrose as he grapples with the effects of amnesia. In the process, Chase develops new friendships and understands his own past bullying behavior from a new perspective. The print edition became a New York Times best seller, and the audiobook won the Audible Audie Award for Multi-Voiced Performance.

Major Themes

Though Korman is well-known for his comic tone, with Restart, Korman takes a more serious tack, delving into the perspectives of various first-person narrators to examine the conflicts, relationships, and significant issues often faced by middle schoolers. He touches on themes of The Possibility of Change and Growth, Bullying in Middle School, True Friendship, and The Courage to Cope with Fear.

Author Detail

Korman wrote his first book for a school assignment when he was just 12 years old, and in 1978, This Can't Be Happening at McDonald Hall was published by Scholastica Canada. He since expanded the popular McDonald Hall series to seven books, and has written over 80 novels which have sold more than 28 million copies.