Absent Hardcover by Rex Ogle

Product Details

• Publisher: Norton Young Readers (2026-09-01)
• Language: English
• Paperback: 304 pages
• ISBN-13: 9781324124894
• Item Weight: 606.69 grams
• Dimensions: 21.69 x 14.5 x 2.64 cm

From award-winning author Rex Ogle, a mixed-format middle grade novel about three boys who skip school, told in verse, prose, and comics.

With a dad in jail and a lack of teachers interested in helping him learn, Manny doesn’t see the point in anything besides skateboarding and writing lyrics. Calvin has so many responsibilities to his father and little brothers that when his bike is stolen, he can’t make it to school on time. And while Liam is studious and wants to become a doctor, he is tormented by bullies and hides out in an unused janitor’s closet instead of going to class. When the boys are thrown together in detention, they realize that they might still have a lot to learn—not just from their teachers, but from each other.

Absent tells the boys’ stories in three distinct voices: Manny’s in verse, Calvin’s as a comic, and Liam’s as a prose journal. Printz Award Honoree and YALSA Nonfiction Award winner Rex Ogle explores school absenteeism in a compelling, entertaining, and utterly distinct novel.

About the Author

Rex Ogle is the award-winning author of Free Lunch, Punching Bag, Abuela, Don’t Forget Me, Road Home, and, most recently, When We Ride. He lives in Los Angeles, California.

LJ-Baptiste is a Boston-based art educator and cartoonist.