Thoughtful, enthusiastic, and diverting.
Queer Jewish teen archaeologist Tennessee Russo embarks on a new adventure—this time to find King David’s legendary lyre.
After 17-year-old Tennessee and his dad recovered the wedding rings of the Sacred Band of Thebes, the audience for their archaeological adventure show exploded. Now they have a new contract with a major streaming network. Days before they start filming the next season, new evidence changes their plans: King David’s lyre, a gift from Jonathan (who Tennessee is sure, based on contextual clues, was his lover) is real. Joined by his best friend and sometimes sexual partner, Gabe, who’s Black, Tennessee races to Rome to find the artifact before their competition does. However, when Tennessee meets Sterling, the straight white woman from the network who was sent to film and produce the new season, his excitement curdles into discomfort. Wooing a bigger audience comes with a high price: selling a version of himself and his relationship with Gabe that no longer feels authentic. From the first pages, the story captures readers’ attention with high stakes, danger, and fast-paced action. As Sterling pushes Tennessee to market himself for sponsors and appeal to a broader audience, he grapples with what it means to share his story—and what he’s willing to compromise in order to share queer history with the world. Although some growth in secondary characters is a bit heavy-handed, the adventure balances relevant real-world concerns with absorbing, treasure-hunting fun.
Thoughtful, enthusiastic, and diverting. (author’s note) (Adventure. 14-18)Pub Date: April 1, 2025
ISBN: 9781454948100
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Union Square & Co.
Review Posted Online: today
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
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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