by Calla Devlin ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 30, 2016
Not just another addition to the “sick-lit” genre, this debut is hands-down one of a kind. (Historical fiction. 13-18)
It’s the summer of 1976, and the Babcock sisters are preparing to say goodbye to their terminally ill mother.
There’s musically gifted 16-year-old Vanessa, narrator and middle sister; foulmouthed artist Adrienne; and 9-year-old, saint-obsessed Marie. The white girls spend most of their days at a Mexican clinic where their mother receives infusions of Laetrile—a cyanide-based cancer treatment banned in the States. Their father’s domineering boss keeps him working long hours, leaving the girls to take care of their mother and one another. Caleb, a clinic patient and also white, brings some light into Vanessa’s life when he and his mother, Barb, move into the Babcock’s San Diego home while Caleb undergoes treatment. Then the metaphorical bomb drops: Mom’s diagnosis is more complicated than the girls had thought. Vanessa’s present-tense narration allows her sisters, their father (finally taking a leave of absence), and Caleb and Barb to communicate their feelings through both their conversations with Vanessa and her observations of their actions. It’s rare to find such a large group of characters who are so well-developed as to be almost real, and the prose is eloquent and precise, every word chosen with care.
Not just another addition to the “sick-lit” genre, this debut is hands-down one of a kind. (Historical fiction. 13-18)Pub Date: Aug. 30, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4814-6115-3
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Atheneum
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2016
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by Calla Devlin
by Laura Nowlin ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 6, 2024
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
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by Laura Nowlin
by Daniel Aleman ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 4, 2021
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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