A compelling California-based coming-of-age novel.
In this first-person novel, a young Ivy League grad from California gets derailed by his mom’s battle with cancer during the 1990s.
An unnamed 22-year-old Harvard grad from Berkeley, Calif., revels in the promise of Bill Clinton, the newly elected U.S. president, and his own literary/teaching life in England. His only challenges are teaching The Great Gatsby to his posh boarding school students and anticipating the arrival of Caroline, his hometown girlfriend, to live with him and join him in European travels. Then, a shocking reset: He learns his mom has been diagnosed with cancer. He flies home for the holidays and decides to stay in the States, ultimately moving to nearby San Francisco to be close to her, his dad and sister Sarah during the struggle. Sadly, Caroline backs away, fearful of his mom’s disease; she moves on with a relationship to another man. Lost and seeking release, the narrator travels with Sarah to friend Meredith’s New Year’s Eve party in Los Angeles, where he discovers the pleasurable escape of crystal meth. He pursues a peripheral film career, toys with possible alternative love interest Kelly, and finally reconnects with Caroline and re-establishes ties with close friend Jason, who remained on track with a Hollywood career. All unravels, however, as the narrator stumbles in the undertow of his new addiction. Hewitt’s semiautobiographical novel has intense, driving appeal, effectively capturing one young man’s life, haunted by the specter of a parent’s cancer. The stream-of-consciousness style hints at that of the 1980s “literary Brat Pack,” while the dangers of crystal meth are surprisingly underplayed and far from Breaking Bad–esque. Additionally, the mother character, upon whom the plot somewhat pivots, remains a bit of a shadowy figure, even in flashbacks; she’s not quite a fully fleshed-out woman who has much of an impact. Overall, however, this novel is striking and heartfelt.
A compelling California-based coming-of-age novel.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: Orson & Co.
Review Posted Online: April 28, 2015
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
In more ways than one, a tale about young creatures testing their wings; a moving, entertaining winner.
A fifth-grade New Orleans girl discovers a mysterious chrysalis containing an unexpected creature in this middle-grade novel.
Jacquelyn Marie Johnson, called Jackie, is a 10-year-old African-American girl, the second oldest and the only girl of six siblings. She’s responsible, smart, and enjoys being in charge; she likes “paper dolls and long division and imagining things she had never seen.” Normally, Jackie has no trouble obeying her strict but loving parents. But when her potted snapdragon acquires a peculiar egg or maybe a chrysalis (she dubs it a chrysalegg), Jackie’s strong desire to protect it runs up against her mother’s rule against plants in the house. Jackie doesn’t exactly mean to lie, but she tells her mother she needs to keep the snapdragon in her room for a science project and gets permission. Jackie draws the chrysalegg daily, waiting for something to happen as it gets larger. When the amazing creature inside breaks free, Jackie is more determined than ever to protect it, but this leads her further into secrets and lies. The results when her parents find out are painful, and resolving the problem will take courage, honesty, and trust. Dumas (Jaden Toussaint, the Greatest: Episode 5, 2017, etc.) presents a very likable character in Jackie. At 10, she’s young enough to enjoy playing with paper dolls but has a maturity that even older kids can lack. She’s resourceful, as when she wants to measure a red spot on the chrysalegg; lacking calipers, she fashions one from her hairpin. Jackie’s inward struggle about what to obey—her dearest wishes or the parents she loves—is one many readers will understand. The book complicates this question by making Jackie’s parents, especially her mother, strict (as one might expect to keep order in a large family) but undeniably loving and protective as well—it’s not just a question of outwitting clueless adults. Jackie’s feelings about the creature (tender and responsible but also more than a little obsessive) are similarly shaded rather than black-and-white. The ending suggests that an intriguing sequel is to come.
In more ways than one, a tale about young creatures testing their wings; a moving, entertaining winner.Pub Date: Nov. 11, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943169-32-0
Page Count: 212
Publisher: Plum Street Press
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2018
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A YA novel that treats its subject and its readers with respect while delivering an engaging story.
In the ninth book in the Bluford young-adult series, a young Latino man walks away from violence—but at great personal cost.
In a large Southern California city, 16-year-old Martin Luna hangs out on the fringes of gang life. He’s disaffected, fatherless and increasingly drawn into the orbit of the older, rougher Frankie. When a stray bullet kills Martin’s adored 8-year-old brother, Huero, Martin seems to be heading into a life of crime. But Martin’s mother, determined not to lose another son, moves him to another neighborhood—the fictional town of Bluford, where he attends the racially diverse Bluford High. At his new school, the still-grieving Martin quickly makes enemies and gets into trouble. But he also makes friends with a kind English teacher and catches the eye of Vicky, a smart, pretty and outgoing Bluford student. Martin’s first-person narration supplies much of the book’s power. His dialogue is plain, but realistic and believable, and the authors wisely avoid the temptation to lard his speech with dated and potentially embarrassing slang. The author draws a vivid and affecting picture of Martin’s pain and confusion, bringing a tight-lipped teenager to life. In fact, Martin’s character is so well drawn that when he realizes the truth about his friend Frankie, readers won’t feel as if they are watching an after-school special, but as though they are observing the natural progression of Martin’s personal growth. This short novel appears to be aimed at urban teens who don’t often see their neighborhoods portrayed in young-adult fiction, but its sophisticated characters and affecting story will likely have much wider appeal.
A YA novel that treats its subject and its readers with respect while delivering an engaging story.Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2004
ISBN: 978-1591940173
Page Count: 152
Publisher: Townsend Press
Review Posted Online: Jan. 26, 2013
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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