An ambitious effort that falls flat.
A coming-of-age story set against the backdrop of the 2004 Beslan school siege.
Eighteen-year-old Darya lives with her father; younger brothers, Boris and Igor; little sister, Nika; and ghost of a mother in the Ossetian region of Russia. With their depressed mother in a state of semiawareness, the running of the household and Nika’s care have fallen to Darya; the line between sister and mother blurred, much to her anguish. When Nika is taken as a hostage on the first day of school and subsequently killed, everything Darya knows and hopes for is turned on its head. Her mother regains lucidity, blaming Darya for Nika's death, while her brothers militantly seek revenge on Chechens and Ingush. Meanwhile, her father retreats into work and spending time with his young lover, bringing home an unwelcome suitor for Darya. The arrival of aid workers and an American journalist allows her to hope for more than the quotidian, and she leaves for Moscow in pursuit of a new life. Darya in her desperation is sometimes cruel and manipulative, and her behavior in Moscow feels unconvincing and inconsistent. Mayhew (The Electrical Venus, 2018, etc.) references Russian classics and fairy tales in an attempt to add cultural texture. Unfortunately the characters are drawn in such a way that it is difficult to become emotionally invested in them, weakening the impact of the story.
An ambitious effort that falls flat. (afterword, Russian terms, Russian names, references) (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5362-0263-2
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 25, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2019
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
This grittily provocative debut explores the horrors of self-harm and the healing power of artistic expression.
After surviving a suicide attempt, a fragile teen isn't sure she can endure without cutting herself.
Seventeen-year-old Charlie Davis, a white girl living on the margins, thinks she has little reason to live: her father drowned himself; her bereft and abusive mother kicked her out; her best friend, Ellis, is nearly brain dead after cutting too deeply; and she's gone through unspeakable experiences living on the street. After spending time in treatment with other young women like her—who cut, burn, poke, and otherwise hurt themselves—Charlie is released and takes a bus from the Twin Cities to Tucson to be closer to Mikey, a boy she "like-likes" but who had pined for Ellis instead. But things don't go as planned in the Arizona desert, because sweet Mikey just wants to be friends. Feeling rejected, Charlie, an artist, is drawn into a destructive new relationship with her sexy older co-worker, a "semifamous" local musician who's obviously a junkie alcoholic. Through intense, diarylike chapters chronicling Charlie's journey, the author captures the brutal and heartbreaking way "girls who write their pain on their bodies" scar and mar themselves, either succumbing or surviving. Like most issue books, this is not an easy read, but it's poignant and transcendent as Charlie breaks more and more before piecing herself back together.
This grittily provocative debut explores the horrors of self-harm and the healing power of artistic expression. (author’s note) (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: Aug. 30, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-101-93471-5
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2016
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