The Infinite Noise: A Bright Sessions Novel (The Bright Sessions, 1)
The Infinite Noise: A Bright Sessions Novel (The Bright Sessions, 1) book cover

The Infinite Noise: A Bright Sessions Novel (The Bright Sessions, 1)

Hardcover – September 24, 2019

Price
$15.99
Format
Hardcover
Pages
336
Publisher
Tor Teen
Publication Date
ISBN-13
978-1250297518
Dimensions
5.67 x 1.21 x 8.6 inches
Weight
14.1 ounces

Description

"Enthralling." ― Shelf Awareness “Emotional and inventive, Lauren Shippen has written a queer love story for anyone who’s ever felt like an outsider. The Infinite Noise managed to make me swoon even as it broke my heart. A thoughtful and tender exploration of mental health, it will make you want to go to therapy, whether you have superpowers or not.” ―Britta Lundin, Riverdale screenwriter and author of Ship It “ The Infinite Noise is a marvelous book about love, mental health, and connection. Lauren Shippen writes with a clean and honest warmth that is deeply refreshing, and her sharp representation of depression and anxiety rings true. Once I started reading The Infinite Noise , I couldn't stop; now that I've read it, my life has become a matter of waiting to get my hands on whatever Shippen creates next.” ―Sarah Gailey, Hugo Award winning author of Magic for Liars “Fans of the podcast will revel in this closer look at the lives of the characters, and readers new to the franchise will drop into this world without missing a beat. Give this to fans of the podcast, as well as readers who enjoy Becky Albertalli's Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda , Rainbow Rowell's work, and Welcome to Night Vale .” ― School Library Journal “The author gives emotions form, texture, and color, taking readers along on Adam's and Caleb's journeys while remembering that a boyfriend is not an antidote to life's supernatural―or mundane―problems.... A warm, satisfying love story with depth.” ― Kirkus Reviews " Shippen does a superb job of handling a swirl of complex emotions, ranging from subtle to fiery as the boys struggle to complete each other and share their differences. " ― Booklist "This is a story that is informative, intense, and complex. It will keep young adults reading until the very end." ― The Midwest Book Review “A refreshing look at the superhero genre.” ― The Advocate “Lauren Shippen writes with empathy, honesty, and grit, painting a raw, vivid picture of found family and the fraught, complex ties that bind them.” ―Mackenzi Lee, New York Times bestselling author of The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue on A Neon Darkness Praise for The Bright Sessions “A gripping character drama with blockbuster-worthy plot twists.” ― The New York Times “Created by the brilliant Lauren Shippen, The Bright Sessions is probably my number one favorite podcast right now.” ―Patricia Thang, Book Riot “[ The Bright Sessions ] combines shades of The X-Files and the HBO psychotherapy drama In Treatment , plus the youthful characters of a WB drama like Roswell or Smallville , into one compulsively listenable tale.... A testament to the simple power of good storytelling.” ― Vox “Radio dramas for the podcast age often veer towards either solid writing or engrossing performances. Rare is the show that satisfies on both fronts like The Bright Sessions .... Shippen never loses sight of the impressive character work that drives the show.” ― IndieWire “Part Professor X, part Sigmund Freud, Dr. Bright has a specialty: treating 'the strange and unusual....' Start at the beginning and binge away an afternoon on Dr. Bright’s couch.” ―WIRED LAUREN SHIPPEN, author of The Infinite Noise , is a writer best known for her work in fiction podcasts. She is the creator and sole writer of the popular audio drama, The Bright Sessions. She went on to executive produce The AM Archives and co-produce Passenger List before founding Atypical Artists, a company dedicated to audio storytelling. She wrote MARVELS , an audio adaptation of the popular comic, released in 2019 by Marvel and Stitcher. Lauren was named one of Forbes's 2018 30 Under 30 in Media and one of MovieMaker Magazine's and Austin Film Festival’s 25 Screenwriters to Watch. She was born in New York City and grew up in Bronxville, New York. She currently lives in Los Angeles but travels frequently to New York.

Features & Highlights

  • Lauren Shippen's
  • The Infinite Noise
  • is a stunning, original debut novel based on her wildly popular and award-winning podcast
  • The Bright Sessions
  • .
  • Caleb Michaels is a sixteen-year-old champion running back. Other than that his life is pretty normal. But when Caleb starts experiencing mood swings that are out of the ordinary for even a teenager, his life moves beyond “typical.”Caleb is an Atypical, an individual with enhanced abilities. Which sounds pretty cool except Caleb's ability is extreme empathy―he feels the emotions of everyone around him. Being an empath in high school would be hard enough, but Caleb's life becomes even more complicated when he keeps getting pulled into the emotional orbit of one of his classmates, Adam. Adam's feelings are big and all-consuming, but they fit together with Caleb's feelings in a way that he can't quite understand. Caleb's therapist, Dr. Bright, encourages Caleb to explore this connection by befriending Adam. As he and Adam grow closer, Caleb learns more about his ability, himself, his therapist―who seems to know a lot more than she lets on―and just how dangerous being an Atypical can be.“What if the X-Men, instead of becoming superheroes, decided to spend some time in therapy?” (
  • Vox
  • on
  • The Bright Sessions
  • )

Customer Reviews

Rating Breakdown

★★★★★
60%
(436)
★★★★
25%
(182)
★★★
15%
(109)
★★
7%
(51)
-7%
(-51)

Most Helpful Reviews

✓ Verified Purchase

Absolutely loved it

i love the podcast and this book is perfect even as a standalone. wonderful, relatable characters. it’s definitely worth the read
2 people found this helpful
✓ Verified Purchase

Great Book for New Readers and Podcast Fast Alike

The Infinite Noise is such a delight, you’ll feel ‘green’ all the way through it!
 
I started off as a fan of The Bright Sessions podcast and was ecstatic to discover it was getting a book trilogy. Initially, I worried there would be too much involved for non-podcast fans to enjoy the book but that issue was nonexistent while reading it. There are callbacks and moments that make long-time fans like myself smile but the story of Caleb and Adam is completely welcoming to newcomers.
 
Lauren Shippen creates wonderful characters that really jump out and grab you. Caleb’s descriptions of feeling emotions are entrancing and paint a detailed picture in my head of a world filled with warring colors of piercing spikes, looming waves, and dripping sludge. The thorough portrayal of Adam’s depression hit close to home, and made me realize I’d never read a character with such a compelling depiction of a mental health diagnosis. The story is a great twist on a typical teen love story, with Caleb’s power and Adam’s insights feeding the reader vivid imagery that pulls you in all the more. Even knowing how their story plays out from the podcast, I was still tense with every scene where they clash, pleading with the book in my hands to let the boys have their happy moments together.
 
I did think the ending was a bit sudden and out-of-nowhere. Maybe it is because I know that their story goes on much further from there, and that even the ending presented here has more details that are fleshed out in the podcast, but the novel ending feels abrupt and disjointed compared to the rest of the well-paced story. Still, I think it’s a good conclusion to this high-school romance. I do highly recommend readers take up the podcast to see how the story continues, and to hear all of the amazing voice actors, expanded cast of characters, and addicting story that will make it impossible to take your headphones off.
 
The Infinite Noise was a joy to devour; the kind of book that left me staying up late, curled up in bed unable to put it down, thinking ‘just one more chapter’ with each page I turned. The story will be addicting to new readers, eager to see more of Caleb and his boyfriend and the world of Atypicals, and to old fans, keen to soak up more details about their favorite characters. Lauren Shippen creates an amazing story that will definitely have me first in line at the bookstore for her future releases.
2 people found this helpful
✓ Verified Purchase

introspective and intelligent

(Disclaimer: I received this book from Netgalley. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)

The Infinite Noise is a quiet book. It's pitched as if the X-Men went to therapy and I think that's pretty accurate. The pressures of growing up, dealing with bullies and first loves, all balanced with power we cannot control and the danger of being exposed. I've never heard of The Bright Sessions before this book, but after The Infinite Noise I'll have to delve into it! You absolutely do not need to listen to it to adore this book. The Infinite Noise is one of the most realistic portrayals of being a super-powered teen I've ever read. Told in dual perspectives, we witness Caleb's frustrations with his power - how it changes his family dynamic and how he has to be careful not to abuse his power. All balanced with Adam's depression and own complex relationship to his parents.

Featuring a m/m relationship between Adam and Caleb, we're able to see, from both perspectives, how it would function to be friends and romantic partners with a super-powered teen. While there's the danger of telling everyone about Caleb's powers, there's also the pressure of being a teen, high school, social situations, and college. Adam's chapters could be seen as more relatable, because how many of us are super-powered empaths, but Caleb experiences this complex fear of being vulnerable. Of telling Adam and others about his power.
2 people found this helpful
✓ Verified Purchase

Will be placed along my most cherished books

Fell in love with the Bright sessions podcast and then fell in love with Caleb and Adams characters. The book is an exciting in depth story of how they meet and their private conversations you don’t see on the podcast. Lauren is an amazing writer and the way she is able to convey emotions has truly changed how I see my own emotions and in turn myself.
1 people found this helpful
✓ Verified Purchase

Excellent for fans of the podcast

The Infinite Noise was pretty much what I expected, as a fan of the podcast. I loved the look into Caleb and Adam’s respective relationships with their families; you got the sense that they had nice families from the podcast but you actually get to see them interact and their moms in particular were lovely. Also, getting to see the development of their relationship purely from their perspectives was great.

My only criticism is that The Infinite Noise is more of a companion to the podcast than a standalone novel/adaptation--there are parts that overlap with scenes from the podcast (whenever Caleb is with Dr. Bright following their first session) that assume you’ve already listened to the conversation that took place and so skips over it with lines like “I explain what happened.” On the one hand, it’s fine, because it means I’m not reading the exact same material over again, but on the other someone reading the book without any prior knowledge of The Bright Sessions might feel like it’s lazy writing.

Perfectly okay that it’s a companion piece, but it’s undoubtedly going to draw in new people who’ve never heard of The Bright Sessions and I feel like they might be let down.

*ARC received from BookishFirst*
1 people found this helpful
✓ Verified Purchase

Best love story of a meathead and a dork

This book is a perfect companion to the podcast The Bright Session and is written in such a way that you can read it with or without knowledge of the podcast before hand. It is clearly written with love about love. the cover is beautiful, the lettering along the spine is beautiful.
✓ Verified Purchase

A wonderful queer love story with a twist

This is a romance that dips into the side of science fiction, and the two sides of the story are well worth telling. Shippen creates likable characters and quickly gets readers to invest in a well-paced and deeply felt friendship that turns into something more.
✓ Verified Purchase

Fun, fresh and romantic!

I have been a fan of Adam and Caleb since listening to The Bright Sessions, so you can imagine my excitement when this book came out! And it certainly does not disappoint! I loved it so so much!
✓ Verified Purchase

A warm, inviting page-turner about two people finding unexpected solace in each other

This book burrowed into me and made me feel warm inside. Which is fitting, since this book is all about emotions and how they affect us. In Infinite Noise, Caleb and Adam, both outsiders in their own right, find solace in each other. One shining moment comes when Adam describes how difficult it is to maintain relationships when you suffer from depression. But Caleb serves as an unexpected balm to Adam's struggles, just as Adam does for Caleb. Their story is beautiful and inspiring and I'll read any potential future stories with these two or in this universe.
✓ Verified Purchase

Great retelling of favorite Bright Sessions characters

I'm a huge fan of The Bright Sessions and Caleb and Adam have always been a favorite. The story fleshes out what you might not be able to add up entirely in the podcast, but there were sections I probably would have been lost a little bit but it wouldn't take away from the overall love story (e.g. Damian showing up and truly understanding Chloe and Frank). I loved revisiting Caleb and Adam's romance and the angst of them figuring out their friendship. Highly recommend it!