Set in both New York and Pennsylvania prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic, Stepping Off by Jordan Sonnenblick tells a story of human relationship dynamics. The novel’s primary characters are three sixteen-year-old youth who navigate issues like parental death, divorce, and friendship challenges.
Ava Green, Chloe Conti, and Jesse Dienstag are best friends whose parents own summer homes in Pennsylvania where the official motto of the vacation-home community is “The Real World Isn’t Real.” Tall Pines Landing provides an escape from the crowds, traffic, pollution, endless noise, and pressures of school and jobs in New York. Although she has a tendency toward a prickly moodiness, Ava is fierce, loyal, perceptive, and funny. She likes bright, flashy things, sunshine, and sparkles. Likewise, Chloe is incredibly beloved, popular, supportive, and cheerful. For his part, Jesse is a people-fixer. His super-power is making girls feel calm. He not only plays the bass and sings but writes and records music.
Despite their mostly idyllic lives in Pennsylvania, the trio discover that a place cannot magically keep them safe from whatever is going on in the rest of their lives. In fact, the real world has reach and the ability to hurt regardless of location. When tragedy strikes each teen, the reader braces for impact and rides the storm. One unlikely life preserver is Annie, Ava’s twelve-year-old sister. In the course of the novel, Annie grows into her own identity, despite losing her mom and being in the middle of a worldwide pandemic.
Amidst the relationship and life drama, Sonnenblick imparts a theme about the value of honest and open communication. Although he alludes frequently to music, the song “Communication Breakdown” by Led Zeppelin provides a key message.
- Donna