A complex and poignant queer romance.
A reluctant pageant contestant falls for a newly out track star.
Ruby Thompson loves only two things—sleep and her car—but she relies on hookups with lacrosse star Tyler and working at her ex-stepfather Billy’s garage to keep her sane between the pageants her mother insists will be their ticket out of the trailer park. When new girl Morgan Matthews runs in front of Ruby’s car, leading to a near miss, they get off on the wrong footing—although Morgan is intrigued by how cute she is. Morgan joins Pride Club and navigates her lesbian identity after being forced out of her Catholic school due to her sexuality. Her Division I college scholarship could be at risk depending on the results of her parents’ discrimination lawsuit against St. Mary’s. Morgan’s annoyance with Ruby’s attitude soon becomes something more, despite warnings from her track teammates about Ruby’s reputation. The girls are from two different worlds—Morgan’s family is loving and supportive while Ruby’s mother fears her daughter may not be straight—and with so much to figure out on both sides, can they truly make it work? Dugan gives each protagonist a distinct voice and compelling point of view, and readers will sympathize with their challenges as they find their ways to love. Ruby and Morgan are White; secondary characters are people of color, and there is pansexual and trans visibility.
A complex and poignant queer romance. (Romance. 13-18)Pub Date: May 18, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-11253-3
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: March 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2021
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away.
A Mexican American boy takes on heavy responsibilities when his family is torn apart.
Mateo’s life is turned upside down the day U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents show up unsuccessfully seeking his Pa at his New York City bodega. The Garcias live in fear until the day both parents are picked up; his Pa is taken to jail and his Ma to a detention center. The adults around Mateo offer support to him and his 7-year-old sister, Sophie, however, he knows he is now responsible for caring for her and the bodega as well as trying to survive junior year—that is, if he wants to fulfill his dream to enter the drama program at the Tisch School of the Arts and become an actor. Mateo’s relationships with his friends Kimmie and Adam (a potential love interest) also suffer repercussions as he keeps his situation a secret. Kimmie is half Korean (her other half is unspecified) and Adam is Italian American; Mateo feels disconnected from them, less American, and with worries they can’t understand. He talks himself out of choosing a safer course of action, a decision that deepens the story. Mateo’s self-awareness and inner monologue at times make him seem older than 16, and, with significant turmoil in the main plot, some side elements feel underdeveloped. Aleman’s narrative joins the ranks of heart-wrenching stories of migrant families who have been separated.
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-7595-5605-8
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
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