A fast-paced sports novel for reluctant readers that sacrifices depth for action.
Tae attempts to fit in at a new school and on a new soccer team.
When Tae’s family moves, not only does he have to adjust to prestigious Westgate High, but he and his brother, both adopted from Korea by their White American parents, stick out in their ethnically homogeneous neighborhood. Previously the team star, Tae pushes through excruciating varsity tryouts, hazing, racist bullying, and an intense, self-inflicted personal training regimen. Tae’s struggle to become a Westgate Warrior mirrors his need to fit in as a racial minority in a mostly White school. As the annual hazing ritual turns dangerous, Tae must choose between staying silent to protect the team and telling the truth. The terse, snappy narration from Tae’s point of view is accessible and immersive. The frenetic soccer games will be best appreciated by fans who understand the sport’s positions, strategy, and lingo. Tae’s perspective enhances the straightforward depiction of hazing as he analyzes his own sense of self-worth as it is tied to membership in a team amid bullying and familial and social pressures. The quick pace keeps the action going for plot-oriented readers but prevents deeper relationship development. Similarly, subjects such as developing new friendships, adoption and family dynamics, racism and belonging, and others have potential but could have been handled with more complexity.
A fast-paced sports novel for reluctant readers that sacrifices depth for action. (Verse novel. 12-18)Pub Date: June 14, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-9785-9599-6
Page Count: 200
Publisher: West 44 Books
Review Posted Online: March 15, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A high-concept premise that falls short in its execution.
A teenage girl finds herself alone after everyone else in her town mysteriously disappears, leaving her scrambling to figure out how to find them all.
One late summer day, everybody in July Fielding’s town disappears. She is left to piece together what happened, following a series of cryptic signs she finds around town urging her to “GET THEM BACK.” The narrative moves back and forth between July’s present and the events of the summer before, when her relationship with her best friend, cross-country team co-captain Sydney, starts to fracture due to a combination of jealousy over July’s new relationship with a cute boy called Sam and sweet up-and-coming freshman Ella’s threatening to overtake Syd’s status as star of the track team. The team members participate in a ritual in which they jump off a cliff into the rocky waters below at the end of their Friday practice runs. Though Ella is reluctant, Syd pressures her to jump. Short, frenetically paced sections move the story along quickly, and there is much foreshadowing pointing to something terrible that occurred at the end of that summer, which may be the key to July’s current predicament, but there is much misdirection too. Ultimately this is a story without enough setup to make the turn the book takes in the end feel fully developed or earned. All characters read white.
A high-concept premise that falls short in its execution. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 19, 2023
ISBN: 9780593327173
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2023
Breathtakingly complex and intriguing.
When someone murders the renowned founder of an oppressively rigorous Washington, D.C., school, three students—all boys of color—emerge as prime suspects.
The police haul in a trio of Urban Promise Prep students, two Black and one Salvadoran, for questioning following the murder of Principal Kenneth Moore. For J.B. Williamson, Urban Promise’s strict rules and regulations are suffocating, but his luck seems to turn when he finally makes a tentative move forward with his crush. Jokester Trey Jackson, meanwhile, does his best to ensure his place in the big basketball game, and no one—not even his tough-as-nails Uncle T—can stop him. Ramón Zambrano dreams of one day owning a restaurant. In the meantime, he gets by hustling pupusas at school and refusing to succumb to pressure from his beloved cousin César, the feared leader of the Dioses del Humo gang. At Urban Promise, one false move can cost a college-bound future. Unfortunately, all three boys engaged in public spats with Principal Moore before his death; to clear their names, they must investigate and uncover the killer’s identity. In a masterful use of multiple points of view from both the main protagonists and secondary characters, Brooks weaves a tale of intrigue, doubt, and hearsay with ease, doling out crucial tidbits and clues. Each gradual reveal prods readers to reconsider and reassess. Featuring a sharp examination of systemic inequality in urban schools and Black and Latine boyhood, this novel delivers in spades.
Breathtakingly complex and intriguing. (Mystery. 14-18)Pub Date: Jan. 31, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-250-86697-4
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: Nov. 15, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
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