A satisfying, feel-good rom-com.
Mia’s friends concoct a plan to find her a date for her sister Samantha’s wedding.
When the groomsman Mia was paired with has to cancel at the last minute, bridezilla Sam insists Mia can’t go to the wedding alone because the photos will look asymmetrical. But instead of finding another friend of the groom for her, Sam decides Mia should find her own date—which is easier said than done because Mia has spent the first three years of high school absorbed in studying, swim team, and math club. Mia’s friends decide to help her out by arranging meet-cutes; they are convinced that if she bumps into someone and has a special moment with them, it will give her the opening she needs to take things further. Mia reluctantly agrees, nervously approaching each surprise meet-cute. After a few disastrous meetings, Mia turns to Gavin, the guy she volunteers with at the community garden, for relationship advice. The dating fails and Mia’s exasperation provide just enough cringeworthy comedy to move the story along. The supportive female friendships are also a strength of the book. Although readers will see the ending coming, Mia’s personal growth and the romance project will keep them engaged. All major characters are Black or people of color.
A satisfying, feel-good rom-com. (Romance. 14-18)Pub Date: Jan. 12, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-7352-2
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Oct. 11, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2020
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
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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