NOW YOU SAY YES

Mari is lost.

Her mother has died suddenly, but before she even breaks the news to her 9-year-old brother, Conor, who is on the autism spectrum, she knows they have to get out of there. Mari was in the foster care system before being adopted; her adoptive mother gave birth to Conor, and their dad later left the family. With this history and no one else to turn to, Mari refuses to get thrown back into the system, much less allow Conor to be separated from her. So, she takes her mother’s car and their camping gear, and they leave Los Angeles for their grandmother’s house in Massachusetts even though they haven’t spoken in three years and Mari doesn’t have a license (she’s 15). It’s 2017, and she persuades Conor, an astronomy buff, to comply by promising they will stop in Missouri to see the much-hyped upcoming solar eclipse. During their cross-country trip, they also visit state and national parks, eat a lot of chips, briefly pick up a hitchhiker, grieve, and meet with some genuine kindness. This road-trip story is introspective and revealing, much like the desert highway in the middle of the night. Mari’s perspective is transparent and fragile, completely realistic to her circumstances. Her attitude toward Conor, while fundamentally loving, is not perfect, but it feels honest for a teen sibling in her position. Main characters read as White.

A grand journey measured in both physical and emotional distance.