Common Sense Media Review
By Kate Pavao
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Strong (but long) sequel about book characters come to life.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 12+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
What's the Story?
In OFF THE PAGE, Delilah is happy to be with Oliver, a dashing prince newly escaped from a fairy tale who becomes surprisingly popular in high school. Meanwhile, back in the fairy tale, Edgar -- the author's real-world son and his doppelganger -- is having a hard time keeping everything in order, especially as other characters and real people swap places, sometimes unintentionally, and as the book starts trying to revert back to its original story. When a fairy tale character dies in the real world, Delilah decides Oliver must go back so she can keep him safe. But when Edgar discovers his mother, the author, is really sick, they must all work together to find new endings for everyone.
Is It Any Good?
This smart, sweet story mixes humor, romance, and deep thoughts about the risks we have to take to write our own stories, but it's very long, with many characters going in and out of the fairy tale. Readers will have to be pretty committed to work their way through it. Still, it's pretty impossible not to like a book with lines such as this one from Delilah, bemoaning her geometry homework: "So in spite of the fact that I am having possibly the worst Tuesday of my life, and my boyfriend is trapped in a fairy tale, and my best friend is hooking up with his clone, I have to prove that two triangles are congruent."
Pretty, classic illustrations of the fairy tale world are interspersed in the story, adding a bit of magic to the book and giving readers a good sense of what it's like to live in the idyllic -- but limited -- world.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the premise. Would you rather live in a beautiful story with limited options or take your chances in the real world where you're mortal?
If you had to live in a book or movie, what kind of story would you choose?
Off the Page is the second book in a series (after Between the Lines). Do you think there will be more books? If so, what will happen?
Book Details
- Authors :
- Genre : Fantasy
- Topics : Fantasy ( Magic ) , Adventures , School ( High School )
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Delacorte Press
- Publication date : May 19, 2015
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 12 - 18
- Number of pages : 384
- Available on : Paperback, Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, Kindle
- Last updated : September 30, 2025
Did we miss something on diversity?
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
Suggest an Update
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate