West Seattle author Conrad Wesselhoeft's book "Adios, Nirvana" was just released by publisher Houghton Mifflin.

The West Seattle Herald did a story about Wesselhoeft and how he came to write the book. Set in West Seattle it is aimed at a young adult audience but has appeal for readers of any age.

It is available from Amazon here.

That story is here. It is fiction, but set in actual West Seattle locations.

His kids attended his Nov. 6 book-signing party at a private Fauntleroy residence near his house attended by over 60 people. They seemed impressed with his ability to write with the voice of a teen, albeit a sophisticated teen.

"I really liked the book and was also amazed he wrote it," said his daughter, Claire, a UW sophomore interested in studying Law, Societies, and Justice, or LSJ.

"It had a voice I wasn't really familiar with," she added. "It almost sounded like something my little brother would write if he could write the way my dad does. It was very relatable to people my age. While reading the book I'd think, 'How does my dad know about this word, the slang, what's "in" right now?' It's really funny and cool. He really did pick up on our little colloquialisms."

"I'm a poet and was astounded that Conrad made his character a poet and pulled it off," said John Willson, who works at the Eagle Harbor Book Company on Bainbridge Island and attended the party. "I think teens need protagonists who are poets who verbalize their life passages in lyrical form. The book is rip-roaring, and racy in a good way."