It's a common story: a family abandons a farm whose crops no longer sustain them, only to discover that the city offers even less hope. Mehmet's feckless father leads his big extended family to Ankara, but the new life is bitter. Wealthy Uncle Yusuf's ``help'' means exploiting his relatives as landlord and employer; his wife is a mean gossip, their son a pampered, vicious sneak. Mehmet makes friends with illiterate, streetwise Muhlis, a talented artist; he also seeks out his best friend from home, whose parents had brought him to Ankhara for better schooling. But the brilliant Hayri, suddenly orphaned, is now starving and demented; Mehmet gets him to a wealthy woman who kindly takes him in, but, ironically, Hayri's new home and prospects set him beyond Mehmet's reach as a friend. Just as Mehmet and Muhlis are planning to return to Mehmet's village, Muhlis is killed in an accident that dramatizes the city's indifference to its poor. Leaving his family, Mehmet sets out for the village alone. Hiáyilmaz, who ``lived in Turkey for many years,'' evokes the milieu with a skill, sympathy, and rich detail that recall Staples's Shabanu (1989); her characterizations may not be as deep, but even the many minor characters here are perceptively realized, while she contrasts the four boys' opportunities— functions more of luck than of native gifts or good will—in a gracefully fashioned plot growing naturally from her theme. A memorable story that will open minds and hearts. (Fiction. 12+)
Pub Date: May 1, 1992
ISBN: 0-316-36078-3
Page Count: 200
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 1992
BOOK REVIEW
A book that seamlessly brings readers along on a journey of impact and empowerment.
A manifesto for budding feminists.
At the core of this engaging novel are besties Chelsea, who is Irish- and Italian-American and into fashion and beauty, and Jasmine, who is African-American, loves the theater, and pushes back against bias around size (“I don’t need your fake compliments, your pity. I know I’m beautiful. Inside and out”). They and their sidekicks, half-Japanese/half-Lebanese Nadine and Puerto Rican Isaac, grow into first-class activists—simultaneously educating their peers and readers. The year gets off to a rocky start at their progressive, social justice–oriented New York City high school: Along with the usual angst many students experience, Jasmine’s father is terminally ill with cancer, and after things go badly in both their clubs, Jasmine and Chelsea form a women’s rights club which becomes the catalyst for their growth as they explore gender inequality and opportunities for change. This is an inspiring look at two strong-willed teens growing into even stronger young women ready to use their voices and take on the world, imploring budding feminists everywhere to “join the revolution.” The book offers a poetic balance of dialogue among the main characters, their peers, and the adults in their lives. The exquisite pacing, which intersperses everyday teen conflicts with weightier issues, demonstrates how teens long to be heard and taken seriously.
A book that seamlessly brings readers along on a journey of impact and empowerment. (resources for young activists, endnotes) (Fiction. 12-18)Pub Date: Feb. 12, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5476-0008-3
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2019
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
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