Most intriguing and provocative.
Would people truly be happy if they could return to the Garden of Eden before the Fall? A girl lives blissfully within such a world, convinced she and everything else was created by Dot, her beloved deity.
Wren and her friends frolic exactly as they wish in their state of perfect innocence. They think nothing of going nude, and they enjoy themselves splashing in the beautiful lagoon and “hooking up” whenever and with whomever they wish. They live according to whim, plucking and eating the abundant fruit that grows everywhere. They follow the Books of Dot and strive to be “dotly.” They don’t even know unpleasant words, adding “pre” to a pleasant word instead: if someone is nervous, they call it “precalm.” When a boy from an outside world that shouldn’t exist breaks into theirs, Wren and her friend Blaze, an unbeliever, try to hide him. Meanwhile, Gil, a fanatic who claims to talk with Dot, begins a campaign against undotliness. As Wren learns more, she reluctantly begins to doubt her faith. Badger’s religious satire is a gutsy one. Nominally a near-future science-fiction story, its examination of the effects of religion, both positive and negative, dominates the narrative. If the book’s resolution seems a bit forced, the exploration of what constitutes bliss—and what does not—makes everything worth it.
Most intriguing and provocative. (Science fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-63079-015-8
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Switch/Capstone
Review Posted Online: June 5, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2015
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind.
In this companion novel to 2013’s If He Had Been With Me, three characters tell their sides of the story.
Finn’s narrative starts three days before his death. He explores the progress of his unrequited love for best friend Autumn up until the day he finally expresses his feelings. Finn’s story ends with his tragic death, which leaves his close friends devastated, unmoored, and uncertain how to go on. Jack’s section follows, offering a heartbreaking look at what it’s like to live with grief. Jack works to overcome the anger he feels toward Sylvie, the girlfriend Finn was breaking up with when he died, and Autumn, the girl he was preparing to build his life around (but whom Jack believed wasn’t good enough for Finn). But when Jack sees how Autumn’s grief matches his own, it changes their understanding of one another. Autumn’s chapters trace her life without Finn as readers follow her struggles with mental health and balancing love and loss. Those who have read the earlier book will better connect with and feel for these characters, particularly since they’ll have a more well-rounded impression of Finn. The pain and anger is well written, and the novel highlights the most troublesome aspects of young adulthood: overconfidence sprinkled with heavy insecurities, fear-fueled decisions, bad communication, and brash judgments. Characters are cued white.
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind. (author’s note, content warning) (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9781728276229
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
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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