Vance, Alexander. 
HEARTBREAK MESSENGER
New York : Feiwel and Friends, 2013
IL 5-8, RL 3.8
ISBN 1250029694

(2 booktalks)

Booktalk #1

Breakups can be messy.  That's why Quentin's break-up service is so popular.  For a small fee, Quentin will inform your significant other that they are now an "ex".  For a little more, he'll even soften the blow with flowers or chocolates.  Quentin is doing well (despite the occasional violent responses to his messages) and happy to help his mother, who seems like she could use the money.  But when his best friend is the next on his list of soon-to-be exes, Quentin realizes there's more to his heartbreak business than he thought.  (Isinglass Teen Award Committee, 2015)

Booktalk #2

Quentin wants nothing to do with dating; he’s only in middle school after all, and he’s already seen the trouble it can cause. That doesn’t mean he can’t be involved as an impartial third party in the relationships of other people though, right? When a one-time opportunity to deliver a message to end the relationship of a high school guy who doesn’t know how to break-up with his girlfriend in person turns into a profitable business, Quentin becomes the Heartbreak Messenger. He encounters tears, anger, and even some good advice in a series of hilarious break-ups for hire.  (Booktalk by Louisiana Young Readers' Choice Committee, 2016)