Those who suspend their disbelief and stick with Caleb to the end of his journey will be rewarded with some answers, but...
Caleb's journey through a surrealistic landscape that’s reminiscent of his favorite video game could be the beginning of his recovery from family trauma.
Caleb blames himself for the accident that has left his brother with devastating injuries. The resulting emotional and financial strains have contributed to his mother’s recent abandonment of the family (aided by a local exterminator). All Caleb wants now is a do-over, a chance to set things right, the way he earns opportunities to change the past and improve his performance in the Boneyard, the setting for his favorite video game. So when a sudden die-off of birds coincides with a series of apparently prophetic doomsday text-message warnings (which might actually be challenges for him to conquer), Caleb races into this strange new reality. He is met with highway accidents, crumbling schools, and characters whose intentions are murky. Woven throughout are flashbacks to the day of the accident and his mom’s final moments at their residence, but these realistic references are mixed with repeated imagery of giant cockroaches, skips in time, and his exploits in the Boneyard. Caleb struggles to make sense of it all, and many readers will likely struggle as well.
Those who suspend their disbelief and stick with Caleb to the end of his journey will be rewarded with some answers, but perhaps not as many as they expect. (Fiction. 12-18)Pub Date: Feb. 16, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4814-3184-2
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Simon Pulse/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Nov. 2, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
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
Exactly what the title promises.
A grieving teen’s devotion to romance films might ruin her chances at actual romance.
Liz Buxbaum has always adored rom-coms, not least for helping her still feel close to her screenwriter mother, who died when she was little. Liz hopes that her senior year might turn into a real-life romantic fantasy, as an old crush has moved back to town, cuter and nicer than ever. Surely she can get Michael to ask her to prom. If only Wes, the annoying boy next door, would help her with her scheming! This charming, fluffy concoction manages to pack into one goofy plot every conceivable trope, from fake dating to the makeover to the big misunderstanding. Creative, quirky, daydreaming Liz is just shy of an annoying stereotype, saved by a dry wit and unresolved grief and anger. Wes makes for a delightful bad boy with a good heart, and supporting characters—including a sassy best friend, a perfect popular rival, even a (not really) evil stepmother—all get the opportunity to transcend their roles. The only villain here is Liz’s lovelorn imagination, provoking her into foolish lies that cause actual hurt feelings; but she is sufficiently self-aware to make amends just in time for the most important trope of all: a blissfully happy ending. All characters seem to be White by default.
Exactly what the title promises. (Romance. 12-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-6762-0
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK TO SCREEN
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