Description

**NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST!**

"Intimate and astonishing."--Jason Reynolds, New York Times Bestselling Author

For fans of You've Reached Sam and If I Stay, a hauntingly beautiful, ultimately hopeful novel-in-verse about a girl in between life and death, by National Book Award Finalist Amber McBride.

Gospel is the Keeper of the Leaving Room—a place all young people must phase through when they die. The young are never ready to leave; they need a moment to remember and a Keeper to help their wispy souls along.

When a random door opens and a Keeper named Melodee arrives, their souls become entangled. Gospel's seriousness melts and Melodee’s fear of connection fades, but still—are Keepers allowed to fall in love? Now they must find a way out of the Leaving Room and be unafraid of their love. In a novel that takes place over four minutes, National Book Award finalist Amber McBride explores connection, memory, and hope in ways that are unforgettable and poignant.

About the Author

Praise For…

**NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST**
FIVE Starred Reviews!
A Publishers Weekly VERY BEST of the Best Books of the Year
A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year
A Chicago Public Library Best Book of the Year
BookPage Best of the Year -- TOP 10
A Booklist Magazine Editor's Choice Selection
School Library Journal Best Book of 2025
A Book Riot Best Book of the Year
A Common Sense Media Best Book of the Year
A Shelf Awareness Best Book of the Year

"Intimate and astonishing..." -- Jason Reynolds, New York Times Bestselling Author

★ "A 17-year-old guardian of the memories of recently deceased young people questions her purpose in the latest from National Book Award finalist McBride....McBride is a master of verse, weaving lines with emotion and character development, articulating pain and hope with an economy of words, and documenting Black lives with tenderness. Reverberating with a haunting trauma, this powerful narrative is packed with Black joy, queer love, and feminist defiance. Compelling and evocative: a must-read. Kirkus Reviews, starred review

★"Achingly tender...through quiet, in-between-feeling moments rendered in an eerie, philosophical tone, McBride considers the liminal spaces between life and death, as well as the weight of grief and loss on children, particularly Black youth. Richly imagined settings pulled from Leavers’ memories (“Haint-­blue ceilings/ & rocking chairs to sit/ & watch giant willows weep”) evoke Black Southern gothic imagery, adding texture to this wholesome speculative novel."--Publishers Weekly, starred review

★ "Sparse yet evocative verse brings to life a deep and profound exploration of the liminal space between life and death, between here and wherever there is. Love and loss are given equal space in the narrative, and creative, thoughtful play with the structure of words on the page is engaging. Gorgeous and haunting, through and through. — Booklist, starred review

★ McBride is without doubt a talented poet, but it is her plotting, world building, and the way she formats her work that makes The Leaving Room an extraordinary, irresistible read." -- Shelf Awareness, starred review

★ This is a truly remarkable and graceful book with a bittersweet final act."--Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, starred review

"The lyrical verse captures tender moments of grief while celebrating Black joy, queer love, and the transformative power of human connection. Readers journey alongside Gospel in this moving exploration of what it means to fully exist and what it takes to choose a life."-- The Horn Book