Winner - Unpublished Stories - Great Northwest Book Festival

Winner - Unpublished Stories - Los Angeles Book Festival

Winner - Unpublished Stories - Pacific Rim Book Festival

Winner - Unpublished Stories - San Francisco Book Festival

Winner - Unpublished Stories - Great Southeast Book Festival

Honorable Mention - Unpublished Stories - Amsterdam Book Festival

“Through Weed, Banta displays her gift for fresh, evocative language…. A spirited tale about finding a new place in the world.” – KIRKUS

"One of the first notable features of The Fly Strip is Weed's wry sense of humor, which captures images of his world with the precision and finely honed finesse of a sharp pair of scissors, snipping out facets of the world he observes with a delightful critical perspective...it's evident that something special is being finely tuned in The Fly Strip. Think Catcher in the Rye, but with a greater focus on social events. Think To Kill a Mockingbird, but with the mature eye of a seventeen-year-old... As readers pursue The Fly Strip, one thing becomes evident: this is an extraordinary coming-of-age story." - D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review

"Gwen Banta has a resonant voice, one that pulls you into highways and bus terminals. For anyone who ever wanted to disappear, or feels like they already have...." --- Gerard Way, My Chemical Romance; author - The Umbrella Academy - Eisner Award Winner

"5 Stars! Gwen Banta's The Fly Strip is an uproariously funny historical novel that will have you in stitches...Gwen Banta is a genius. She managed to convey the seriousness of the times and at the same time managed to inject humor to bring her story to life...it is highly educational, entertaining, and emotional."--- Kerliza Foon - Readers' Favorite

"Gwen Banta has a resonant voice, one that pulls you into highways and bus terminals. For anyone who ever wanted to disappear, or feels like they already have...." --- Gerard Way, My Chemical Romance; author - The Umbrella Academy - Eisner Award Winner

"5 Stars! Gwen Banta's The Fly Strip is an uproariously funny historical novel that will have you in stitches...Gwen Banta is a genius. She managed to convey the seriousness of the times and at the same time managed to inject humor to bring her story to life...it is highly educational, entertaining, and emotional."--- Kerliza Foon - Readers' Favorite

The Fly Strip has nice, patient rhythms. The story unfolds in a quiet, unhurried way, leaving room for lots of texture and ambience. --Steven Bochco, Producer - NYPD Blue, LA Law; Author - Death by Hollywood

The Fly Strip is wonderfully written novel. Gwen Banta provides the reader with a startling authentic voice in her 17-year-old main character, Weed Clapper, who is relatable, funny...and tragic. Early 1960 s rural Indiana is a time and place ripe for Weed s journey...and there is a connection between Weed s conflicts to those of our youth today. This is an epic adventure-- one that I imagine will not only be a best-selling novel, but also a beautiful film. Kudos to Gwen for giving us such a great literary work! --Jeff Lester, Director/CEO, Big Picture Studios