by Kelsey Sutton ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 26, 2016
There is no excess here. There are no distractions. Fain’s story is simply a brilliantly crafted coming-of-age novel that...
Still reeling from the effects of the recession that has thrown her family into financial turmoil and the loss of her best friend, who moved away, high school student Fain Frederick seeks solace in the only place she can find it: her own imagination.
Whether she is writing or embarking on nightly adventures with magical creatures, Fain’s rich imaginary life, much like Max’s in Where the Wild Things Are, provides the elusive comfort she craves but cannot find in reality. It’s only when the unexpected possibility of a new friendship (or perhaps even love) presents itself that Fain dares to consider abandoning her imaginary life for one in the here and now. Spare and poignant, every word of this haunting and elegant novel in verse feels painstakingly selected. It is the perfect medium for Fain to share her story. Readers will hold their breath as the vulnerable and endearing Fain navigates the treacherous minefields of both teen relationships and familial bonds in search of love and a sense of belonging. Like footprints, each poem reflects a step along Fain’s journey.
There is no excess here. There are no distractions. Fain’s story is simply a brilliantly crafted coming-of-age novel that will appeal to the hearts and minds of all readers who have ever felt alone. (Fiction. 12 & up)Pub Date: April 26, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-399-17289-2
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2016
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by John Boyne ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 7, 2016
Chilling, difficult, and definitely not for readers without a solid understanding of the Holocaust despite the relatively...
A young boy grows up in Adolf Hitler’s mountain home in Austria.
Seven-year-old Pierrot Fischer and his frail French mother live in Paris. His German father, a bitter ex-soldier, returned to Germany and died there. Pierrot’s best friend is Anshel Bronstein, a deaf Jewish boy. After his mother dies, he lives in an orphanage, until his aunt Beatrix sends for him to join her at the Berghof mountain retreat in Austria, where she is housekeeper for Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun. It is here that he becomes ever more enthralled with Hitler and grows up, proudly wearing the uniform of the Hitler Youth, treating others with great disdain, basking in his self-importance, and then committing a terrible act of betrayal against his aunt. He witnesses vicious acts against Jews, and he hears firsthand of plans for extermination camps. Yet at war’s end he maintains that he was only a child and didn’t really understand. An epilogue has him returning to Paris, where he finds Anshel and begins a kind of catharsis. Boyne includes real Nazi leaders and historical details in his relentless depiction of Pierrot’s inevitable corruption and self-delusion. As with The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (2006), readers both need to know what Pierrot disingenuously doesn’t and are expected to accept his extreme naiveté, his total lack of awareness and comprehension in spite of what is right in front of him.
Chilling, difficult, and definitely not for readers without a solid understanding of the Holocaust despite the relatively simple reading level. (Historical fiction. 12-14)Pub Date: June 7, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-62779-030-7
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: March 29, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2016
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by John Boyne ; illustrated by Oliver Jeffers
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by John Boyne & illustrated by Oliver Jeffers
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by John Boyne
by Peter Pohl & Kinna Gieth ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 23, 1999
The sudden death of her twin leaves a teenager struggling with grief and her fragile sense of self in this absorbing, inwardly focused import from Sweden, part fiction, part memoir. So close are the sisters that after Cilla is killed by a motorist Tina can still hear her voice, still see her just by looking in a mirror, still hold conversations; she even finds herself taking on some of Cilla’s character traits, seeking an inner balance that she has lost. Able to describe her experiences only by switching back and forth between third person and first, Tina observes the different ways those around her grieve, and finds temporary solace in many places: reading and writing poetry, performing on stage, playing her violin, trying a brief but intense fling at summer camp, even talking to a perceptive psychologist—but unlike many such stories, there is never any sense here that the authors are running through a catalog of coping strategies, or offering trite platitudes. A year later, Tina discovers that, in forming new friendships and moving on in life, she has passed the worst of her pain, and found ways to distance herself from Cilla without losing her completely. In a smooth, natural-sounding translation, this is a thoughtful, complex reminiscence. (Fiction. 12-15)
Pub Date: March 23, 1999
ISBN: 91-29-63935-2
Page Count: 247
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 1999
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