Fresh and witty on the surface, tender and heartfelt at its core.
A devoted teen leads her friends on a queer pilgrimage to a celebrity event (OK—more like a post-prom road trip to a YouTuber meet and greet).
Snarky, “chaotically bisexual” Amelia Applebaum has harbored a longtime parasocial obsession with recently-gone-viral YouTuber Walter Holland. Sure, he’s a total stranger, but he’s personally responded to her social media comments not once, but twice! As senior year comes to an end, Amelia drags her three best friends—Zora and twins Natalie and Mark—to a college campus in upstate New York, several hours’ drive away from their home in Westchester, for an in-person event with Walter. Anxious about change, Amelia feels that this is an important swan song for her and her close-knit friend group before they leave for college in the fall. Amelia never expected that by showing up and meeting Walter in person, they’d end up roping him into their adventure, transforming him from unattainable crush to genuine friend. Meanwhile, her feelings for Natalie seem to be developing into something more. Albertalli creates a realistic microcosm of queer and Jewish teen culture with no shortage of her signature humor and clever snark (Amelia and Walter are white and Jewish, the Jewish twins have a Chinese dad and are implied biracial, and Zora, “the group’s token gentile,” is cued Black). The friends’ banter is warm, endearing, and relatable.
Fresh and witty on the surface, tender and heartfelt at its core. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: June 10, 2025
ISBN: 9780063045927
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
A lackluster and sometimes disturbing mishmash of overused tropes.
The Plague has left a population divided between Elites and Ordinaries—those who have powers and those who don’t; now, an Ordinary teen fights for her life.
Paedyn Gray witnessed the king kill her father five years ago, and she’s been thieving and sleeping rough ever since, all while faking Psychic abilities. When she inadvertently saves the life of Prince Kai, she becomes embroiled in the Purging Trials, a competition to commemorate the sickness that killed most of the kingdom’s Ordinaries. Kai’s duties as the future Enforcer include eradicating any remaining Ordinaries, and these Trials are his chance to prove that he’s internalized his brutal training. But Kai can’t help but find Pae’s blue eyes, silver hair, and unabashed attitude enchanting. She likewise struggles to resist his stormy gray eyes, dark hair, and rakish behavior, even as they’re pitted against each other in the Trials and by the king himself. Scenes and concepts that are strongly reminiscent of the Hunger Games fall flat: They aren’t bolstered by the original’s heart or worldbuilding logic that would have justified a few extreme story elements. Illogical leaps and inconsistent characterizations abound, with lighthearted romantic interludes juxtaposed against genocide, child abuse, and sadism. These elements, which are not sufficiently addressed, combined with the use of ableist language, cannot be erased by any amount of romantic banter. Main characters are cued white; the supporting cast has some brown-skinned characters.
A lackluster and sometimes disturbing mishmash of overused tropes. (map) (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Nov. 7, 2023
ISBN: 9798987380406
Page Count: 538
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Sept. 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2023
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
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