Better Than Running at Night is a satire on art school about a girl who is drawn to a guy who mistreats her. Which happens to a lot of us. In this case, she maybe should’ve seen it coming, because this dude is literally dressed as the devil.
Illustrations by Hillary Frank
About the book
Having removed the overly dramatic makeup of her solitary high school days, Ellie looks forward to recreating herself and her art. Arriving alone for winter session at the New England College of Art and Design, Ellie finds the ideal opportunity to do so. In her first days she begins dirty dancing with the devil. Then she makes out with him. A story about independence, trust, and boys.
Best Books for Young Adults, American Library Association
Top 10 First Youth Novels, Booklist
Editor’s Choice, Booklist
What People Are Saying
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“With honesty, wit, and a wild first-person narrative, this first novel breaks boundaries in YA fiction with a story about college freshman Ellie Yelinsky and her search for art, love, sex, and meaning.”
Hazel Rochman, Booklist, starred review
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“Readers will enjoy the presentation of a strong female who puts finding herself and moving ahead with her talent ahead of maintaining a false pretense to her boyfriend or to the professor who is unwilling to acknowledge the dedication and improvement she has shown.”
School Library Journal
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“The thing I like most about Hillary Frank’s novel is how adamantly it refuses to deliver easy answers to the character’s problems. It’s messy like life. It feels real. I worried for that girl.”
Ira Glass, This American Life
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“Using spare language and a dry, witty tone, Hillary Frank skewers the hypocritical art world in this brillaant debut novel.”
Jennifer Hubert, Amazon
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“Ellie herself is a deeply authentic mix of uncertainty, daring, and personal strength, and her revelatory first semester is true to life; the development of her artistic confidence is a particularly original and compelling theme.”
The Bulletin