Parents' Guide to

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

By Barbara Schultz, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 14+

Tale of dying teen is full of embarrassing comic moments.

Book Jesse Andrews Coming of Age 2012
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this book.

Community Reviews

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age 15+

Based on 11 parent reviews

ELMNOP
ELMNOP Adult
April 28, 2021
age 10+

This book is one of my favourites

I let my 10-year-old read this and he loved it but there was a lot of swearing and he promised not to say them and he never has (he's 13 now)

This title has:

Too much swearing
1 person found this helpful.
bravo06
bravo06 Parent of 6, 11 and 12-year-old
October 30, 2022
age 18+

Racism, degradation of women, sexually explicit scenes, profanity, stereotypes, and drugs/alcohol make this the best book for degenerates

Trash.

This title has:

Too much sex
Too much swearing
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
See all 11 parent reviews

What's the Story?

The narrator of ME AND EARL AND THE DYING GIRL, Greg Gaines, is a hilariously awkward high school student. He's painfully embarrassed by nearly everything that comes out of his mouth -- even by his own thoughts. The only real friend he has is Earl, a troubled kid whose household is headed by a mom who's mentally checked out and run by Earl's angry, truant brothers. Greg and Earl share a love of movies and filmmaking, and they spend a lot of their time creating remakes/parodies of their favorite films. When Rachel, a girl Greg once had an uncomfortable non-relationship with, becomes sick with leukemia, Greg's mother presses Greg to re-initiate a friendship with her. Greg ends up taking what for him are huge emotional risks to try to cheer Rachel up, especially after Earl decides to let Rachel see their films.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (11 ):
Kids say (16 ):

Greg's perpetual state of shame and self-loathing gets a bit old to other characters in the book, and it does a little to readers as well. The tone of Me and Earl and the Dying Girl is practically nihilistic, but the novel is full of hilarious moments and believable characters. It's a testament to Jesse Andrews' talent with comedy and character development that a novel in which a teen is dying can be funny so much of the time. Descriptions of Greg and Earl's films are especially entertaining, and in those cases, Greg's self-deprecating M.O. is very effective.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how realistic Jesse Andrews' portrayal of high school life seems. Does it ring true to your experience?

  • Greg and Earl give what they have, from their own personal talents, to help Rachel. What other sorts of help can a teen give a sick friend?

  • What kind of friend Greg is to Rachel? He argues that he's not a very good friend; what do you think?

Book Details

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Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

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