A moving and authentic exploration of one young woman’s moral compass.
Savannah Howard leaves home in Tennessee to attend prestigious Ivy League Wooddale University on a full scholarship.
With her Mama’s mantra—“I’ve worked hard. I deserve to be here”—in her heart, hardworking Black 18-year-old Savannah has the common sense to know that predominantly White Wooddale will be a world apart from life in the Memphis projects where she grew up. However, nothing can prepare her for the hurtful microaggressions she faces on Day 1 from her privileged roommate, Elaina, and Elaina’s mother or the defacing of the statue commemorating the first Black president of Wooddale. When she suspects that student-body president Lucas and his frat brothers are responsible for the incident, Savannah’s quest for justice begins alongside her new friends, Black sophomores Tasha and Benji. Online, she uses the #WoodaleConfessions hashtag to draw attention to the cause. Savannah’s voice is clear, and through her, Lee’s debut presents readers with a highly relatable, strong female lead. Savannah wants to make her mother proud and stay solid for her brilliant BFF, B’onca, who has been dealt a different hand. She vacillates between keeping her head down and working toward her degree and being an activist. What transpires will leave readers in awe of her integrity and grit. This novel will speak to anyone who has struggled with knowing whether the right thing to do was the right thing for them.
A moving and authentic exploration of one young woman’s moral compass. (Fiction. 13-18)Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-30915-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Nov. 15, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
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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