Some of today’s most celebrated YA authors, including Avi, Walter Dean Myers, Jacqueline Woodson (writing with Chris Lynch), Annette Curtis Klause, Norma Fox Mazer, Virginia Euwer Wolff, and Howe himself, are represented in this generally fine though uneven anthology. Loss appears in various guises here, including deaths of parents, a grandparent, pets; loss of a career and friends; disappearance of a beloved sibling; the theft of a worthy-of-first-prize bicycle; and the possible end of a marriage. What all these stories share in common is their hopeful, life-affirming message that even painful losses help one to accept, change, and grow. Most memorable is Klause’s “Summer of Love.” Set in San Francisco in the summer of 1967, the story revisits Simon, vampire “hero” of this author’s acclaimed novel The Silver Kiss (1991), and imagines him as the owner, for a short time, of a cat. Imagine his—and readers’—astonishment when he discovers his capacity to love and to experience crushing pain upon the animal’s death. Most quirky but as moving is Wolff’s “Chair: A Story for Voices,” in which the slow deterioration of an old man’s mind is achingly played out in a spare dialogue in three “acts” between Grandpa and Buddy, his devoted grandson. Surprisingly out of kilter, though, is Myers’s slow-moving contribution about an adult baseball player’s decision to quit the game and work through his marital problems. Teen readers will be less likely to relate to this one than to any of the others. Overall, this anthology should make readers think, feel, and nod in recognition. Here’s good news for teachers, too: the stories serve as fine springboards for introspective student-writing and classroom discussion. (Fiction. 12+)
Pub Date: July 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-689-82862-4
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Atheneum
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2001
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
A book that seamlessly brings readers along on a journey of impact and empowerment.
A manifesto for budding feminists.
At the core of this engaging novel are besties Chelsea, who is Irish- and Italian-American and into fashion and beauty, and Jasmine, who is African-American, loves the theater, and pushes back against bias around size (“I don’t need your fake compliments, your pity. I know I’m beautiful. Inside and out”). They and their sidekicks, half-Japanese/half-Lebanese Nadine and Puerto Rican Isaac, grow into first-class activists—simultaneously educating their peers and readers. The year gets off to a rocky start at their progressive, social justice–oriented New York City high school: Along with the usual angst many students experience, Jasmine’s father is terminally ill with cancer, and after things go badly in both their clubs, Jasmine and Chelsea form a women’s rights club which becomes the catalyst for their growth as they explore gender inequality and opportunities for change. This is an inspiring look at two strong-willed teens growing into even stronger young women ready to use their voices and take on the world, imploring budding feminists everywhere to “join the revolution.” The book offers a poetic balance of dialogue among the main characters, their peers, and the adults in their lives. The exquisite pacing, which intersperses everyday teen conflicts with weightier issues, demonstrates how teens long to be heard and taken seriously.
A book that seamlessly brings readers along on a journey of impact and empowerment. (resources for young activists, endnotes) (Fiction. 12-18)Pub Date: Feb. 12, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5476-0008-3
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2019
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