An insightful, hard-hitting, and tender tale of converging mental health journeys.
A YA novel offers an exploration of trauma in teenagers.
Shouse’s book features a trigger warning that gives almost a chapter-by-chapter breakdown of its content. The tale’s themes range from suicide and self-harm to misdiagnosis, sexual assault, and arson. Each chapter is narrated by one teen from a group of youths ages 14 to 18. The band is at Pleasant Valley Treatment Center, a mental health and rehabilitation facility for young people. The story opens with Tobias, a reluctant patient recently admitted after a suicide attempt, in the Maple unit. His perspective alternates with his eventual friends: Matthew, his roommate; the cool and friendly Derek, aka Six; pretty, bubbly Darla and her calmer friend Kate; quiet, intelligent Renee and her fiery, older sister figure, Liz; James, who seems sworn to silence; and the scar-faced Bullfrog. The alternating viewpoints trace the plot through scenes of group therapy. Readers, along with the patients, discover the backstory that landed each character in Pleasant Valley. Friendships among the teens develop as they help one another come to terms with their experiences and start the healing process. In the novel, Shouse makes the case that although the path to healing is neither linear nor easy, unconditional acceptance and love from those around the patients can make the odyssey worthwhile. The author’s first foray into YA fiction strikes the right balance between naïve hope and realistic skepticism in the handling of incredibly heavy themes. The characters are diverse in terms of age, race, socio-economic status, sexual orientation, and personality. The author skillfully commits to representation without linking this to such stereotypical themes as Black suffering. The book is well paced and smartly structured, with the alternating points of view serving to develop both the characters and the plot. Different approaches to mental health practices, from cognitive behavioral therapy to medication and mindfulness, are also cleverly examined through different players, further emphasizing that there is no one-size-fits-all solution to mental health. While some dialogue on healing reads as slightly stiff and dogmatic, the core themes of listening and showing compassion in the face of others’ suffering are expressed in simple, poignant terms. At one point, James tells Matthew: “You guys get it, even when you don’t.”
An insightful, hard-hitting, and tender tale of converging mental health journeys.Pub Date: May 24, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-945060-50-2
Page Count: 316
Publisher: Motina Books
Review Posted Online: June 14, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Raw, delicate, and deeply caring.
When Death-Cast doesn’t call, fate intertwines the lives of two boys, both haunted by their pasts and with futures they can’t escape.
In this third installment of the series that opened with 2017’s They Both Die at the End, Paz Dario waits every night for Death-Cast to call—as it should have for his father nearly 10 years ago, when Paz shot him to save his mother’s life. But the call never comes. Death-Cast killed Paz’s dreams of an acting career: No one will hire him now because the world sees him as a villain. When Paz tries (not for the first time) to put an end to his suffering, an unexpected encounter with Alano Rosa, the heir of Death-Cast, stops him. Both in a place of desperation, Alano and Paz sign a contract to live for Begin Days instead of waiting for their End Days. As suspenseful and emotionally wrenching as the previous titles in the series, this new installment explores heavy themes of abuse, mental health, self-harm, and suicide. Paz grapples with a recent diagnosis of borderline personality disorder. Silvera surrounds Alano and Paz with a web of complex relationships. Although the protagonists fall fast for one another and form a deep connection over Alano’s desire to support Paz, Silvera emphasizes the importance of professional help. Both Alano and Paz have Puerto Rican heritage. The cliffhanger ending promises more to come.
Raw, delicate, and deeply caring. (content warning, resources) (Speculative fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 6, 2025
ISBN: 9780063240858
Page Count: 720
Publisher: Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
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
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