An absorbing treatment of a fascinating subject.
A girl slowly realizes that she must escape the religious cult in which she has grown up.
Fourteen-year-old Eva was named by the Rev. Ezekiel, leader of the Righteous Path, when she and her mother joined it 10 years ago. Under commandment of God, Ezekiel marries all the women—most of the cult members—and forbids biological mothers and children from acknowledging any special relationship. He doles out frequent severe physical punishments for the slightest infractions and controls the lives of the cult members completely. However, the cult needs money, and Eva makes excellent jewelry. Ezekiel allows her and another cult member to go to town, where Eva buys beads and sells her jewelry, providing most of the group’s income—which Ezekiel spends on guns, not food. In town, Eva meets Trevor, who becomes her only hope when Eva’s mother faces death from a dangerous pregnancy. Finally exposed to the outside world, Eva begins to question her faith. Leaving the cult would mean an actual escape, however, and she knows she can’t abandon her fragile mother. Fixmer illustrates the inner workings of a cult, illuminating Eva’s psychological progress while exposing the leader as a con artist. Eva’s doubts and fears as well as her growing courage are communicated clearly in her first-person, present-tense narration. The action and the psychological realism combine to make an intriguing story, with believable characters and events.
An absorbing treatment of a fascinating subject. (Fiction. 12-18)Pub Date: March 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-8075-8370-8
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Whitman
Review Posted Online: Jan. 9, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
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
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