This intense, timely story provides incredible insight into the reasons why knowledge of football’s potential danger is not...
A high school football player is relentless in his effort to become a ferocious linebacker, ignoring the damage his body may be experiencing.
Arlo loves football and happily follows his brother, Lloyd, on the school team. His family is divided: his dad supports their playing, but their mother is so concerned about the sport’s dangers that she keeps her own file of information about concussions. The two brothers begin to move in opposite directions with the team, Lloyd quitting and Arlo becoming more determined to get faster and stronger. Lloyd enters a downward spiral, seemingly unable to stop it; meanwhile, Arlo becomes a nearly unstoppable star, but his fierce play begins to trouble his coaches and his girlfriend. Even when he is removed from the team due to his high “Hit Count,” he refuses to face what football may be doing to his brain and his body. The strength of this hard-hitting novel is Lynch’s portrayal of the drive and hunger of young football players. The action is authentic and captures the game’s speed and violence. The family dynamic and Arlo’s relationships with his girlfriend and friend add texture. These combine to counteract an uneven pace and relatively loose structure.
This intense, timely story provides incredible insight into the reasons why knowledge of football’s potential danger is not enough to keep young players from taking the field. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 19, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-61620-250-7
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Algonquin
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2015
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
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in.
Black is back with another dark tale of Faerie, this one set in Faerie and launching a new trilogy.
Jude—broken, rebuilt, fueled by anger and a sense of powerlessness—has never recovered from watching her adoptive Faerie father murder her parents. Human Jude (whose brown hair curls and whose skin color is never described) both hates and loves Madoc, whose murderous nature is true to his Faerie self and who in his way loves her. Brought up among the Gentry, Jude has never felt at ease, but after a decade, Faerie has become her home despite the constant peril. Black’s latest looks at nature and nurture and spins a tale of court intrigue, bloodshed, and a truly messed-up relationship that might be the saving of Jude and the titular prince, who, like Jude, has been shaped by the cruelties of others. Fierce and observant Jude is utterly unaware of the currents that swirl around her. She fights, plots, even murders enemies, but she must also navigate her relationship with her complex family (human, Faerie, and mixed). This is a heady blend of Faerie lore, high fantasy, and high school drama, dripping with description that brings the dangerous but tempting world of Faerie to life.
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in. (Fantasy. 14-adult)Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-316-31027-7
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Sept. 25, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2017
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