Seventeen-year-old Luke struggles to keep his sanity while his family, his girlfriend, and his school tragically ignore, mistreat, or misunderstand his symptoms. Set in Australia, Luke’s story is told from multiple perspectives, starting from his death and moving back and forth in time. Award-winning Australian author Clarke (The Heroic Life of Al Capsella, not reviewed, etc.) leads the reader into the thoughts and behavior of Luke and the people who define his life. Expelled from two schools because of impulsive behavior, he struggles to stay in Glendale during his final year of high school, but finds it impossible to concentrate on his studies. His father is so disappointed in his academic record that he stops speaking to the boy. Margaret, Luke’s mother, is more sympathetic toward her son, but has difficulty in discussing the situation with either him or her husband. Luke’s adolescent sister hates his nonconformist behavior and avoids him. Only his little sister Naomi and his girlfriend, Caro, have any relationship with him, but even those are flawed by his inability to share his fears and anxieties. Ironically, just as Luke’s father is about to make amends, Luke is killed by the night train whose whistle only he ever hears. The author's intimation that little Naomi, feeling guilty about Luke’s death, is headed toward the same unhappy life as her brother makes the ending even more grim and hopeless. A believable, gripping story, unrelenting and tragic. (Fiction. YA)
Pub Date: June 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-8050-6151-7
Page Count: 200
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2000
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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