TINFOIL CROWNS

With her quirky sense of humor and handcrafted tinfoil accessories, 17-year-old Fit is a YouTube sensation.

Fit is driven to rise above her circumstances. When she was a toddler, her family had a comfortable, middle-class life. This all changed when Fit’s mother, River, in the hellish grip of postpartum psychosis, tried to kill her and her infant brother. River went to prison, Fit’s grandfather gained custody, and the family lost everything. Fit’s trauma metastasized into a temper that quickly escalates into destructive rage when triggered. Her legions of fans and their comments, shares, and likes are her comfort. Her mother’s eventual release from prison provides just the kind of storyline her followers crave, and Fit’s manipulation of the mother-daughter drama brings the views she needs to secure her big break but leaves a slew of wounded relationships in its wake. Debut author Jones weaves together enormous themes—mental health, trauma, social media, and class—without a hint of judgment. This of-the-minute narrative is accessible and authentic, layered with diverse, flawed, and immensely likable characters. The perspective shifts between Fit and River, the latter both in the past when she lost touch with reality and in the present as she achingly works to piece herself and her family back together after more than a decade of incarceration. Fit and her family are white.

An empathetic glimpse into the rise of tomorrow’s celebrity du jour.