An often hilarious yet also poignant tale of sibling loyalty.
Three siblings go to dramatic lengths to hide their neglectful mother’s disappearance in this comedic novel.
Drew, who is almost 18, is used to the responsibility of caring for Carna, her deeply sarcastic 15-year-old sister, and Lock, her sweet brother who is just 8. She’s been filling in the sizable gaps left by her mom’s irresponsibility since she was in grade school, but even she is challenged when her mom stops responding to texts en route to a Justin Timberlake concert in Mexico. Additionally, though Drew is dedicated to her younger charges, her exit plan after graduation has been in the works for a long time. Drew’s bitingly funny, smart, and deceptively vulnerable voice drives this contemporary fiction offering that delivers madcap comedy, a bit of a mystery, and an engaging family drama. Some secondary characters are more developed than others, and the short, vignette-style chapters feel a little choppy in places, but Drew, Carna, and Lock are an unforgettable trio that readers will wholeheartedly root for despite—and also because of—their realistic problems and human fallibilities. The rural Wisconsin setting of their curmudgeonly father’s lake cabin and the wintry details of Larch Leap, the fictional town they live in, are spot-on, adding an appealing sense of place to this character-driven story. All of the characters seem to be white.
An often hilarious yet also poignant tale of sibling loyalty. (Fiction. 13-18)Pub Date: Aug. 22, 2023
ISBN: 9780593530337
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: June 8, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
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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