NEED TO KNOW

Over four weeks leading up to publication, PEOPLE has exclusive serial excerpts from bestselling Irish novelist John Boyne's The Elements

Read the final excerpt below

The Elements arrives on shelves Sept. 9 from Henry Holt and Company

AIR

Although Emmet has communicated through little more than a series of feral grunts since being dragged from his bed this morning, I can tell that he’s impressed by the Business Class cabin.

"Nice, right?" I say as we sit down. The cabin is laid out in a 1-2-1 formation, and I’ve booked a central pair with a privacy barrier that can be raised between us.

"Pretty cool," he concedes, before glancing to his left, in the direction of an empty single seat. "Do you think anyone’s sitting over there?"

"Why?"

"If no one takes it, could I

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