The upbeat ending that resolves many of Lawrence's struggles is unsurprising and fits well, but there are major flaws here...
A stoner in the process of reforming is pressured to act as a mentor for a new, younger student at his high school in this comedic novel.
First-person narrator Lawrence is the privileged son of two successful but neglectful parents who can't even be bothered to attend a meeting about his possible expulsion from school. His lawyer father does, however, write a threatening letter to the principal, which keeps Lawrence enrolled. He’s assigned by his school counselor to help Spencer, who’s from Norway, as a means to show his good faith to follow the rules. Lawrence is also newly sober, after using pot constantly for years, and begins to somewhat reluctantly fall for a girl who marches to her own drum. Lawrence's back story—he fell in with friends who valued getting high more than they valued him in an effort to shed an earlier geeky image—feels genuine, and readers will feel sympathy for him. A fair amount of his self-conscious humor is funny. However, many other elements played for laughs fall flat—such as Lawrence’s mild unease with gayness, a glaringly stereotyped Latina housekeeper, and a Vietnamese-American villain who accuses others of racial profiling when she's caught out. Characters of color are specified, leaving readers to infer that Lawrence and the rest are white.
The upbeat ending that resolves many of Lawrence's struggles is unsurprising and fits well, but there are major flaws here that will turn readers off. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Nov. 8, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-239939-7
Page Count: 352
Publisher: HarperTeen
Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
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
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
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