It is Alex’s strength, sense of humor, and vulnerability that make this read compelling
After learning that the government faked an Earth apocalypse in series opener Consider (2016), 18-year-old Alexandra Lucas jumps through a vertex to transport herself 300 years into the future to warn her loved ones of the truth: that Earth still exists.
On the other side of the vertex is Solbiluna-8, a holographic world run by advanced humans—vances—who have convinced the new arrivals that Earth has been destroyed and that living in this new realm is their only alternative. Alex’s dark wit emerges through her anxiety as she remarks the world’s strangeness, down to the absence of toilet paper in her assigned quarters. Knowing this new place is a trap to enslave humans, the white teen is determined to find her loved ones and tell others the truth even though she struggles with debilitating panic attacks. Her allies wind up finding her, recruiting her into a secret rebellion group called the Umbra—but there is discord within the rebellion. Feisty narrator Alex engages readers from the first page, as Acevedo elegantly weaves in back story from the first book while building the moment-to-moment suspense of this mysterious holographic dimension. It’s a rare treat to see a protagonist who suffers from an anxiety disorder, showing readers humanizing frailty even in the context of a technologically advanced world.
It is Alex’s strength, sense of humor, and vulnerability that make this read compelling . (Science fiction. 14-adult)Pub Date: July 11, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-63163-098-9
Page Count: 300
Publisher: Jolly Fish Press
Review Posted Online: May 9, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
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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