Written by New York Times bestselling author, Kevin Wilson, whose other work includes “Nothing to See Here” and “The Family Fang,” “Now Is Not the Time to Panic” was labeled as one of the most anticipated books of the fall by Time. Following its release just under a month ago, book lovers have been sharing their takes on the heavily accredited author’s most recent work.

“Now Is Not the Time to Panic” is a contemporary, coming of age, literary fiction. Wilson begins his latest story with Frankie Budge circa 2017. She is a successful author, wife and mother when she gets a call from a journalist at The New Yorker accusing her of having involvement in the Coalfield Panic of 1996. Frankie, in a panic, hangs up the phone and so begins her story.

Wilson takes the reader back to 1996 with a 16-year-old Frankie in Coalfield, Tennessee. Yes, just 43 minutes from our very own Rocky Top. Here, this teenage Frankie complains of the stale, mundane circumstance of her life. Through the narration of the older, present day Frankie we were introduced to earlier, the wistful image of a small hometown that everyone can relate to in the way you are only able to after many years of reflection is painted. This fresh dichotomy throughout makes for a fun narrative mode and later, as the story develops, is able to carry deep emotional weight and evocation.

Here in Coalfield, Zeke is new to town, moving with his mother after his father’s affair. Unsure if this is a just-for-the-summer situation, or a permanent settlement, Zeke, seeing Frankie alone at the pool, assumes she too is new to town and asks to team up with her in a neighborhood game. But Frankie, of course, is not new.

Frankie is unpopular with a splash of angst and forlorn. Her triplet brothers are well liked and in their own world, and her endearingly pathetic mother is going through a painful divorce with Frankie’s father, who has already begun a new family.

Thus begins the awkwardly budding friendship of Frankie and Zeke: two kids that are just about as normal as anyone can imagine. Frankie, at the time, is lost in the repetition and monotony of small town days and gets a new perspective and excitement for life through the eyes of her new friend.

The two of them, empty in their boredom, begin making “art.” Subjective, personal and deeply impressionistic, the two go through an almost cinematic sequence. Wilson is able to create such precious youthful excitement as the two are creating college posters with a photocopy machine Frankie’s brothers stole from the school.

On their poster, Frankie, an aspiring writer, conjures up the phrase, “The edge of shantytown filled with gold seekers. We are fugitives, and the law is skinny with hunger for us.” What does this mean? Frankie doesn’t even know. Though the words carry weight like some sort of a magical spell.

Zeke and Frankie determine that part of the importance of art is sharing it. The two take to the night to plaster their posters on walls, light posts and everything in between. Eventually an impression is left and nothing is the same — not for a long time. Emo bands in the 2000s named themselves after the phrase. Imitation artwork appears on clothing lines, “Saturday Night Live” has their own take on it too. The magic of the words and the art enchants the world.

The town begins to panic. Some are worried that the poster is some calling for satanic ritual and witchcraft, or warnings of organized crime groups and gangs. Others are sure that it’s a band promoting a performance or new release. Nonetheless, everyone in town has something to say about it. Not long after, everyone in the world seems to have something to say about it.

With the journalist from The New Yorker putting the pieces of Frankie’s secret together, the present-day narrator Frankie is fearful that her involvement in The Coalfield Panic will have repercussions 20 years later.

There are some complications to the plot going on with adult Frankie. Her paranoia seems unwarranted. She had never done anything wrong with the posters. This journalist exposing her wouldn’t put her at risk or subject to any sort of grand criminal proceedings like Frankie is seemingly making it out to be. Wilson seems to be working overtime to convince the reader that adult Frankie is being met with a serious matter, but it is of course the journey that these posters go on and the journey that Frankie and Zeke go on in producing this that is the most captivating part of the story. Adult Frankie’s story feels contrived and less genuine.

Admittedly, certain parts are so intentionally cringey, realistic and forcing of unwanted recollection it is honestly displeasing to read. Perhaps that is a credit to Wilson’s skill in capturing the horrifyingly awkward process of growing up, but if you’d rather not relive your teens, this book is terribly painful at times.

Zeke and Frankie’s shared familial damage are sad, beautiful examples of the premature way that some kids must face the cruel realities of life. Still, the sadness is not on the surface level. Wilson’s story is whitty, whimsical and exaggerated in a skillful and intentional way, depicting the absurdity of youth and the strange thrill brought about by everything when you’re young. Still, most of the humor is rooted in undertones of sadness and satisfaction. The lyricism in certain parts of this novel sticks out blatantly but still beautifully.

The absurdity of youth in “Now Is Not the Time to Panic” is deeply nostalgic and fun. In a small town before the common presence of computers and internet and certainly mobile devices, readers will no doubt find themselves missing the times when a phone wasn’t always in their pocket.

Two kids whose families are going through hardship during the summer have nothing but a lack of supervision, ample time and a photocopy machine. And thus, as we follow the story of two lonely and forgotten people creating something borderline heroic out of nothing at all, begs the unexpectedly deep question of: what more in life do you need than a metaphorical photocopier — a shred of hope? There is this sense that if Frankie and Zeke can create mayhem, stories and excitement from Coalfield of all places, then there is hope to wring life out of anywhere. “Now Is Not the Time to Panic” is transformative in the sense of a reminder that just about anything in life can feel exciting if you make it so.

This is not the kind of story that you can’t put down, but it’s a good one to pick up while you’re waiting in between classes or if you have some down time at work. It’s easy to get away from but also easy to get into.

Though this story is wholly original, readers of “An Abundance of Katherines” by John Green, “We Were Liars by E. Lockhart,” even “The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger or (insert your favorite coming of age novel here) will recognize and appreciate the spot-on way Wilson does justice to the kind of story these characters demand and restore hope in the fading ingénue of the coming-of-age genre.