by Janice Lynn Mather ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 30, 2024
A moving look at a sister’s flawed, heartfelt attempts to heal in the wake of emotional devastation.
A high school senior in Nassau, Bahamas, struggles to readjust to life after a tragedy.
Seventeen-year-old Karmen Wallace can’t stop thinking about her older brother, Julian. Six weeks before the start of the school year, Julian died by suicide. No one in her family can make sense of his passing: Why would Julian—a smart college student bursting with potential—end his life? How long had he been carrying so much pain? Karmen feels like she’s the only person in her family who wants to understand Julian’s death. Her father stubbornly advocates for routine; her mother is a husk of her former self. Karmen’s sure that if she investigates Julian’s past, she can fix her broken family. But when a fellow student makes a thoughtless comment about death, Karmen “snaps,” hurling a ball and accidentally smashing the school chemistry lab’s window. As a consequence, the principal places her on a mandatory three-week leave in order “to heal.” During this time at home, Karmen digs deeper into Julian’s final days, only to discover more questions. In her third novel for young adults, Mather poignantly explores the delicate bonds of sibling relationships. She writes about depression and anxiety without judgment, and her depiction of Karmen’s survivor’s guilt—a potent mixture of emotions that form a heavy cloud of grief—is handled with considerable nuance and empathy.
A moving look at a sister’s flawed, heartfelt attempts to heal in the wake of emotional devastation. (trigger warning, resources) (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: April 30, 2024
ISBN: 9781665903950
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Feb. 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2024
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by Laura Nowlin ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 2013
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
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SEEN & HEARD
by Laura Nowlin ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 6, 2024
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
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