Punk 57
by Penelope Douglas
★ Top 10 book of 2016 · #8 on Best Books of 2016
Misha and Ryen spent seven years as pen pals, trading letters and arguments while keeping strict rules against photos, phone numbers or social media. When Misha finds a girl online who might be Ryen, he decides he must meet her.
Best for: Readers who enjoy edgy contemporary romance with an enemies-or-more, pen pal twist
Punk 57 is #8 on BookWard's Best Books of 2016, out of 68 2016 books that cleared our data bar.
What Punk 57 is about
In fifth grade, two kids at different schools are matched as pen pals. A mix-up gets things off to a funny start: Misha's name leads the other teacher to assume he is a girl, and Ryen's teacher assumes Ryen is a boy. They argue about everything, from the best take-out pizza to Android versus iPhone to whether Eminem is the greatest rapper, and for seven years the letters keep crossing, Ryen's written in silver on black paper.
Three rules keep the friendship intact: no social media, no phone numbers, no pictures. Then Misha spots a photo online of a girl who matches Ryen's details and decides he has to meet her. He does not expect to hate what he finds. Told in the alternating voices of Misha and Ryen, the story plays with the gap between the person you imagine and the person who turns up, and with what happens when a long-held trust is tested.
Punk 57 on the Best Books of 2016
Punk 57 came out in 2016. Of the 68 books first published in 2016 that met BookWard's data bar, it ranks #8 on our Best Books of 2016 list.
Why it made the list: 2,465 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4 out of 5 (63 ratings); 118 are reading it right now. The list ranks each year’s books on how many readers have picked them up, how highly readers rate them, and how many are reading them right now.
It earns Being read right now.
Nearby on the 2016 list
- Born a Crime Trevor Noah, #6
- Ikigai Héctor García, #7
- When Breath Becomes Air Paul Kalanithi, #9
- Deep Work Cal Newport, #10
See all Best Books of 2016 Best books by year
More years: Best Books of 2015 Best Books of 2017.
The numbers behind it
- Readers: 2,254 want to read it, 118 are reading it now and 93 have read it, according to Open Library.
- Ratings: 4 out of 5 from 63 Open Library ratings.
| Signal | This book (0 to 100) | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Reach | 94 | 55% |
| Reader love | 54 | 25% |
| Being read right now | 91 | 20% |
Questions about Punk 57
When was Punk 57 published?
Punk 57 by Penelope Douglas was first published in 2016.
Was Punk 57 one of the best books of 2016?
Punk 57 is #8 on BookWard's Best Books of 2016, out of 68 2016 books that cleared our data bar. 2,465 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4 out of 5 (63 ratings); 118 are reading it right now.
Why is Punk 57 on the Best Books of 2016 list?
2,465 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4 out of 5 (63 ratings); 118 are reading it right now.
More of the best books of 2016
- It Ends with Us Colleen Hoover, #1
- Dog Man Dav Pilkey, #2
- The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck Mark Manson, #3
- Never Split the Difference Chris Voss, #4
- The Hidden Oracle Rick Riordan, #5
- Born a Crime Trevor Noah, #6
See the full Best Books of 2016, the Top 100, or new books on Rising.
How we know
This page uses public data: Open Library reader counts and ratings, and Wikipedia page views for recent years. The description is paraphrased from real source text. Rankings reflect reading interest, not quality or sales, and can be affected by data gaps. Lists update monthly.
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