Love and Other Unknown Variables
Release Date: 10/07/14
Entangled Teen
Summary from Goodreads:
Charlie Hanson has a clear vision of his future. A senior at Brighton School of Mathematics and Science, he knows he’ll graduate, go to MIT, and inevitably discover solutions to the universe’s greatest unanswered questions. He’s that smart. But Charlie’s future blurs the moment he reaches out to touch the tattoo on a beautiful girl’s neck.
The future has never seemed very kind to Charlotte Finch, so she’s counting on the present. She’s not impressed by the strange boy at the donut shop—until she learns he’s a student at Brighton where her sister has just taken a job as the English teacher. With her encouragement, Charlie orchestrates the most effective prank campaign in Brighton history. But, in doing so, he puts his own future in jeopardy.
By the time he learns she's ill—and that the pranks were a way to distract Ms. Finch from Charlotte’s illness—Charlotte’s gravitational pull is too great to overcome. Soon he must choose between the familiar formulas he’s always relied on or the girl he’s falling for (at far more than 32 feet per second squared).
The future has never seemed very kind to Charlotte Finch, so she’s counting on the present. She’s not impressed by the strange boy at the donut shop—until she learns he’s a student at Brighton where her sister has just taken a job as the English teacher. With her encouragement, Charlie orchestrates the most effective prank campaign in Brighton history. But, in doing so, he puts his own future in jeopardy.
By the time he learns she's ill—and that the pranks were a way to distract Ms. Finch from Charlotte’s illness—Charlotte’s gravitational pull is too great to overcome. Soon he must choose between the familiar formulas he’s always relied on or the girl he’s falling for (at far more than 32 feet per second squared).
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In
doing research for Love and Other Unknown Variables, I came across an interesting
study that showed how our brains respond similarly to certain “beautiful”
math problems just as they would a piece of music or art. It was one more piece
of evidence proving math and art are more interrelated than I’d ever thought
they could be.
This
realization led me to write this scene for Charlie and Charlotte so they could
begin to see not just how they differ, but the similarities they share. In this
short excerpt, Charlotte has shown Charlie her book of sketches in an attempt
to be more open with him.
Charlotte takes
a deep breath that hitches as it travels up her spine like it’s catching on
snags along the way. “I’m not used to sharing. It’s always been easiest to keep
things close.”
I want to know
what things she’s keeping so close. I want her to unpack them from inside herself,
perhaps making room for…what? For me? This is ludicrous. I should hand her back
her sketches and walk away.
I push my own
notebook toward her instead. “It’s only fair.”
She chuckles and
glances down at the open page. “What’s this?” Her voice is soft beside me.
She’s pointing at the problem I was working on moments ago. In it, I’ve had to
use the symbol for infinity, but I drew her tattoo instead. I didn’t even
realize I’d done it.
“Trying to
figure me out, Mr. Hanson? Think you’ll get extra credit?”
“I—” I’ve got
nothing to say. I stare at the symbol I’ve drawn with the word hope bound up in
its endlessness. There are many ideas in mathematics that we know are true,
even if we’ll never be able to solve them. Too many. They’re the paradoxes that
make math so beautiful.
Charlotte feels
like that. Like a problem I’ll never really figure out, but that I know is just
right for me.
She leans her
shoulder into mine. “You and me, Charlie, we’re on the same team—both artists.
We just work with different mediums.”
Charlie’s
brain definitely lights up when he sees a beautiful math problem. Do you have a
favorite math equation or scientific theory? How about a piece of music or art
that moves you?
About the Author
Shannon Lee Alexander is a wife, mother (of two kids and one yellow terrier named Harriet Potter). She is passionate about coffee, books, and cancer research. Math makes her break out in a sweat. Love and Other Unknown Variables is her debut novel. She currently lives in Indianapolis with her family.
Author Links:
Grand prize: Signed bookmark, tissues, temporary tattoo, science/math book page rose ring (made by Shannon), infinity charm bracelet (made by Shannon).
Four runners-up
prizes: Signed bookmark, temporary tattoo, science/math book page rose pin (made
by Shannon)
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