A compassionate story for reluctant readers.
Sydney is used to being at the top of the food chain as the big bully at her school on the White Earth Ojibwa Reservation.
However, after her parents’ divorce she moves with her mother to Minneapolis, where she finds out what it’s like to be on the other side. As one of the few Native kids in her new school, she is bullied by many peers. Trying to fit in, Sydney cuts her waist-length hair and avoids wearing anything that might indicate she is Native, but she continues to be ostracized and isolated. Eventually Sydney finds a kindred spirit in Finn, a boy who’s persecuted for being gay. As the story progresses, readers understand how the two friends are treated as outcasts just for being themselves and see how they learn from one another. Watching her new friend being tormented helps Sydney view her past actions in a new light and decide how she wants to behave going forward. The story also highlights the impacts of harsh behavior at home, as Finn’s mother thinks that being gay is a choice—one she disagrees with—while Sydney’s father makes her feel mediocre no matter how hard she tries, which is another piece of her journey to finding her voice. Sigafus (Ojibwa) has written a brief and accessible novel that will engage readers and help them understand that we all make mistakes but what truly matters is whether we can learn from them.
A compassionate story for reluctant readers. (resources) (Fiction. 12-18)Pub Date: March 1, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-939053-38-1
Page Count: 118
Publisher: 7th Generation
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2021
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
Exactly what the title promises.
A grieving teen’s devotion to romance films might ruin her chances at actual romance.
Liz Buxbaum has always adored rom-coms, not least for helping her still feel close to her screenwriter mother, who died when she was little. Liz hopes that her senior year might turn into a real-life romantic fantasy, as an old crush has moved back to town, cuter and nicer than ever. Surely she can get Michael to ask her to prom. If only Wes, the annoying boy next door, would help her with her scheming! This charming, fluffy concoction manages to pack into one goofy plot every conceivable trope, from fake dating to the makeover to the big misunderstanding. Creative, quirky, daydreaming Liz is just shy of an annoying stereotype, saved by a dry wit and unresolved grief and anger. Wes makes for a delightful bad boy with a good heart, and supporting characters—including a sassy best friend, a perfect popular rival, even a (not really) evil stepmother—all get the opportunity to transcend their roles. The only villain here is Liz’s lovelorn imagination, provoking her into foolish lies that cause actual hurt feelings; but she is sufficiently self-aware to make amends just in time for the most important trope of all: a blissfully happy ending. All characters seem to be White by default.
Exactly what the title promises. (Romance. 12-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-6762-0
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK TO SCREEN
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