Wow, I loved this book! I've read "Nothing to See Here" but this book is much better. It's the story of two 16-year olds who find each other and form a powerful, artistic connection that ends up exploding with consequences neither could have imagined. The novel portrays the kind of obsession and angst that can happen during adolescent relationships, which felt cathartic to me. I would not have enjoyed it so much if I didn't know that they were going to meet again as adults and get to read how they would deal with that connection and period of time, and I was not disappointed. Highly recommended! Thank to NetGalley for the ARC.

Oooh, that was good. Not quite Nothing to See Here good but also not The Family Fang.

Thank you, NetGalley folk, for a chance to read an ARC.

I really, really enjoyed Kevin Wilsons "Nothing to See Here" a couple years ago - so quirky, weird & unputdownable. Delighted to receive an early copy of his latest effort, "Now is Not the Time to Panic". This new novel is told in dual time-lines about two lonely & misfit teens, Frankie & Zeke, in late 90's small-town Tennessee, just trying to make "ART" and be noticed, when a poster they created goes what would today be referred to as "viral". Forward 20 years later, and they are leading their own adult and artistic lives when their roles & involvement in the "1996 Coalfield Panic" is discovered, and we are along for that journey. This is also very much a "coming-of-age" story and I loved the main characters so much, especially Frankie! At times both funny & sad, I adored & devoured this book & HIGHLY RECOMMEND it, a true pleasure to read. Don't forget the "author's note"! My sincere thanks to the publisher, author & Net Galley for the complimentary DRC, the exchange of which did not affect my opinion.

A coming of Age story about how obsession can carry forward through the adulthood. A single summer in 2 teens life have long reaching effects. I loved this one!!

As a huge fan of "Nothing to See Here", I was extremely excited to get my hands on this ARC. It has much of what I've come to love about Wislon's storytelling, with some new good into the mix. Wilson's writing has gotten stronger throughout the years, and it shows here with how well his descriptions transform the story and better help you understand the character's emotions, and also drive your own as well. I will say the characters weren't as engaging as I was expecting from him, but the plot itself helped the story move along well enough to a satisfying ending. If you enjoy weird, this is for you.

Fans of Kevin Wilson's "Nothing to See Here" and "The Family Fang" will be thrilled with his return novel "Now is Not the Time to Panic." It's about two misfit teens in the '90s who spend a memorable summer together and get find themselves inadvertently causing a national scandal. The story switches back and forth between the time of the events as well as more recently when the two protagonists are grown and their role in the controversy threatens to be exposed.

Wilson writes warmly about his characters. There is also a lot of humor throughout as fans of Wilson would expect. I happily tore through this book loving being part of this special universe Wilson had created. Wonderful.

Thanks to Netgalley which provided a galley in return for this review.

I loved Nothing to See Here and thought this one would be just as good. I decided to give up on this book because I felt myself wishing I was reading something else. I like his writing and the story had potential to be great…. But it felt like it wasn’t going anywhere. You get this flash to the future and you think some big thing is going to happen but it never really did. I wanted to love this book but I found that I didn’t really care what was happening.

This novel centers stone one key phrase. Frankie is a lonely teenager who doesn’t have friends, when she meets new-to-town Zeke. They form a connection, And decide to come up with an art project together. It becomes a poster with an odd drawing and the pivotal saying. They put it up all over town and chaos ensues. The story goes between Frankie’s perspective in current time frame and in the late 90s. .

This was a book I did not know I needed, but am very glad that I found. A quirky book about how art can manifest itself into change as well as lift us up above our everyday-blahs, this story focused on characters who were lively and interesting. I found myself wanting more of their stories and could totally see this as a series on a streaming platform. I enjoyed the interaction between the characters and the twists and turns their lives took during their summer project. In the first pages, I was drawn in and couldn't wait to see where the story was going to take them.

I will definitely have to check out the author's other books.

If you’ve ever read anything by Kevin Wilson before, then you know he has a lot of strange things happening inside his head, and with his new book, Now Is Not The Time To Panic, he lets all that strange out to play. In the small town of Coalfield, teenage Frankie dreads spending the long, hot summer with nothing to do as her brothers are crazy and all have jobs, and her mom works all the time. Then she meets Zeke at the pool. He and his mom came to live with his grandmother for the summer while his parents contemplated divorcing. Frankie and Zeke are two outsiders who come together over their shared passion for art, and they create something — a piece of art — that takes on a life of its own. In Wilson’s own words, “It’s a book about friendship, about art, about memory, and about what it means to hold on to the person who we were, even as we become someone else.” This is a great coming-of-age story for the outcasts and artists who don’t always get a story, and how small moments from our teens really resonate and form our future selves.

Do you remember reading about The Coalfield Panic of 1996? No? Well that’s because it’s not a real thing. But Kevin Wilson’s writing will make you feel like it is.

It’s the summer of 1996 and mysterious posters with a strange, but catchy, phrase begin popping up all over town. No one understands where they came from or what they mean. The creators of the posters, teenagers Frankie and Zeke, watch as things start to spiral out of control. The posters and the phrase spread like wildfire and bad things start to happen. Is it too late for them to fess up now? Will their friendship survive? How will this teenage experience affect their adult lives?

Like Wilson’s Nothing to See Here, this book is an original story with deep themes running throughout. Some of his sentences make me laugh out loud. His writing is quiet, but clever and smart. The story feels heavy. Hard to put down but very bittersweet. It illustrates the way a secret can bog you down and the freedom that comes from allowing the truth to be revealed.

I found this one engaging and riveting but in an odd type of way. Not suspenseful, per se, but riveting for sure.

I’ll recommend this to readers looking for a unique story that will stick with you long after you’ve finished.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This is a well written book. It has some fine lines, a few well conceived set pieces, a fair share of perceptive and insightful observations, and lean dialogue. That said, try as I might I found neither the characters, nor their situations, nor the overall narrative engaging enough to arouse or hold my curiosity and attention. As a consequence, it doesn't seem fair to write much more of a review, apart from encouraging inquisitive readers to give the book a try.

Kevin Wilson's latest novel, NOW IS NOT THE TIME TO PANIC, provides a quirky take on a traditional coming-of-age story. When Frankie, a lonely 16-year-old, befriends Zeke, a recent transplant to her small Tennessee town, what could have been yet another boring summer turns into a life-changing experience. The two collaborate on a piece of art that quickly creates an interest, then a panic, among the people in town, the repercussions of which follow them both for years.
Wilson's writing style is wonderful, and his depiction of Frankie's adolescent point of view is spot on. I personally wished that his author's note was at the end of the book instead of the beginning, because it does rest in the reader's mind throughout this story. That said, I've loved Wilson's other books, and this newest novel keeps him on my list of favorite authors.
Thanks to Ecco Press and NetGalley for the ARC!

Kevin Wilson's Now Is Not the Time to Panic is perhaps most impressive for its authentic rendering of the American South/Midwest-- the existential angst and profound loneliness an artistically-minded teen may experience in the face of a homogenized, sanitized milieu. While the concept of 'otherness' is spoken about most widely in academic and urban settings, it is the middle of the country where this otherness may be most deeply rooted, and most deeply felt. Wilson captures that hollow feeling, that constant yearning for something greater, with Frankie and Zeke, offering them (and us) a temporary salve in the form of their friendship and artistic companionship. As I read, I was imbued with a sense of nostalgia for an era and a place I never lived, for people I never met, for a childhood rebellion I myself never really had. While the story isn't particularly plot-heavy, it does more than lure you into the lives of the characters; it transports its reader, physically and emotionally. The length is also spot on. Had it been any longer, I'd have tired of the lack of real events and grown sour on the idea that this one poster could've made such an impact on the town or on the greater culture. But there is just enough meat here to pose philosophical questions about the trickle down effects of cultural panic, about making meaning of art, and how we as humans can react to small moments in such drastically different ways, leaving some of us scarred for the rest of our lives.
For readers looking to dip a toe in something literary, without having to drudge through 400+ pages of drawn out, pretentious narrative, this book is for you.

Now Is Not the Time to Panic by Kevin Wilson left me feeling much like The Family Fang did...cold, a little bored and creeped out by the odd characters in the story. I finished the novel just to see what happened, but I was not a fan. If you like your fiction weirdly creepy and with no repercussions for those who created a panic, then this is the book for you!

Thank you to the author, Ecco and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

My favorite part is that Kevin Wilson makes weirdness so disarming. And the dialogue is so good! Everything flows in such a delightful way. I feel so fortunate that Now Is Not the Time to Panic is a book out there in the world and that I got to read it.

Special thanks to NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review. Publication date: November 8, 2022.

This book is fantastic! It completely played into my love of art and art history with the story of the method behind Frankie and Zeke’s creation and the public’s response to art. I love how a concept so abstract as a meaningless sentence can cause an uproar and the foundation for an entire plot. To me, that is beautiful. It means that there is beauty in the most mundane corners of life.

This is the first book I’ve read by Kevin Wilson, and now I cannot wait to read more. Thank you!

I could not put this down! Frankie is incredibly well written and I loved the 90s vibe. Wilson is funny and just a unique storyteller.

I’m a fan of Kevin Wilson. It started for me with The Family Fang, a quirky tale about a mother/father performance art duo who disappear, leaving their teenage children alone and wondering what was up. Then, it was Nothing to See Here, a funny but heartfelt story about two children who spontaneously combust whenever they get angry. Both books appealed to my desire for something off the beaten path, told with humor and warmth. All this is to say that I was pretty sure I’d like Now is Not the Time to Panic. The title itself indicated more quality quirkiness from Kevin Wilson.

NINTTTP tells of one summer in the life of 16-year-old Frankie and her new friend Zeke. Both are artsy and together they create a poster featuring an inventive quip. Frankie and Zeke make hundreds of copies of the poster and put them up everywhere. The poster takes off in popularity in their city and beyond, leading to unforeseen consequences. I enjoyed this book, which is saying something given my high expectations for Kevin Wilson. (It would have been easy for it to fall short.) It was a story that I could pick up and get engrossed in whenever I had time. As characters, Frankie and Zeke were interesting and believable. Their actions and emotions felt like what I, myself would have had at their age. It’s always enjoyable to “see” yourself in a character. It makes for a rewarding reading experience. Regardless of whether or not I can relate to a character, though, I can’t wait to see what Kevin Wilson comes out with next.

This is a coming of age story of two Tennesse teens in 1996. They create something that lives on when they want to be finished with it. When it started out, I thought the idea of the book might be intriguing. As the book progressed I felt the characters were rather flat and the story not stimulating enough. After the main ideas had been laid out it was rather repetitive.