Despite a disappointing ending, an intricate story that opens up the universe of troubled silence.
Just like a geode, Jeremy Stone appears unremarkable on the outside, while his inner life shimmers with the complexity of glittering crystals.
Being the quiet new kid at school and the only Native American inspires other dichotomies: a folded-up note from a sympathetic classmate that gets intercepted by “the cruel ugly fucks who think they run the world.” The outside reads, “Loser” and “Welcome to Hell,” but inside, in beautiful cursive: “Don’t let the bastards get to you. Caitlan.” Caitlan becomes a touchstone, if a troubled one. Meanwhile, Jeremy imagines spiritual advice on survival from Old Man, his deceased grandfather: “Don’t say too much. / Don’t feel too much. / Don’t reveal who you are. / Don’t stay in one place too long.” Choyce’s novel traverses the difficult landscapes of identity, depression, violence, parental struggles, substance abuse, bullying, cutting and suicide with the brilliant accessibility of free verse, which may have particular appeal to reluctant readers. Jeremy’s shamanlike gift to navigate between real and spirit worlds leads him to conclude that “what is real to us / is what we believe is real.” Few would disagree, though readers’ journeys to that conclusion become difficult in the final third of the book, as the account loses focus and begins to meander.
Despite a disappointing ending, an intricate story that opens up the universe of troubled silence. (Verse/fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: March 15, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-88995-504-2
Page Count: 216
Publisher: Red Deer Press
Review Posted Online: Jan. 14, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2014
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
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
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