A well-crafted coming-of-age story that offers an earnest antidote to teen disaffection.
A troublesome teenager must adjust to life with his grandfather in the West Indies in Williams’ debut YA novel.
Black American teen Kadeem Johnson has just earned his third suspension in a month from his Florida high school for fighting. It’s the last straw for Kadeem’s mom, Gwendolyn, a hardworking nurse who packs him off to stay with his grandfather on St. Kitts, the West Indies island where she grew up. (The author’s portrayal of Gwendolyn’s love, frustration, and fear for Kadeem’s future offers a convincing impetus for her desperate decision.) Narrator Kadeem is certain that in a week or two his mother will feel that he’s learned his lesson: “I was gonna be back in Orlando soon. I was gonna have WiFi soon. This was all gonna be over soon.” Soon, he comes to terms with the fact that the arrangement may be permanent. Adjusting with difficulty to a different culture, Kadeem slowly finds positives in his enforced new life: his evolving relationship with a girl named Tess Turnbull; his school, where everyone has to wear a uniform, but there’s no lockdown drills and no one messes with you in the halls; and his eccentric grandfather, whose sly brand of tough love (involving physical labor and self-reliance) earns Kadeem’s grudging cooperation and respect—and, he realizes in a time of crisis, his affection. The novel straightforwardly asserts the behavioral and societal benefits of avoiding social media, having more structure in schools, and eating a healthier diet. It’s hardly subtle in its message, but it’s wrapped in lively, relatable storytelling. And although readers may find the rendering of some characters’ West Indian accents a bit wearying (“you cyan jus’ come root up de chile lak’ he a running vine”), the island setting, rooted in the author’s own upbringing on St. Kitts, is brimming with authenticity.
A well-crafted coming-of-age story that offers an earnest antidote to teen disaffection.Pub Date: April 27, 2022
ISBN: 9798813996856
Page Count: 167
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: Nov. 18, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Raw, delicate, and deeply caring.
When Death-Cast doesn’t call, fate intertwines the lives of two boys, both haunted by their pasts and with futures they can’t escape.
In this third installment of the series that opened with 2017’s They Both Die at the End, Paz Dario waits every night for Death-Cast to call—as it should have for his father nearly 10 years ago, when Paz shot him to save his mother’s life. But the call never comes. Death-Cast killed Paz’s dreams of an acting career: No one will hire him now because the world sees him as a villain. When Paz tries (not for the first time) to put an end to his suffering, an unexpected encounter with Alano Rosa, the heir of Death-Cast, stops him. Both in a place of desperation, Alano and Paz sign a contract to live for Begin Days instead of waiting for their End Days. As suspenseful and emotionally wrenching as the previous titles in the series, this new installment explores heavy themes of abuse, mental health, self-harm, and suicide. Paz grapples with a recent diagnosis of borderline personality disorder. Silvera surrounds Alano and Paz with a web of complex relationships. Although the protagonists fall fast for one another and form a deep connection over Alano’s desire to support Paz, Silvera emphasizes the importance of professional help. Both Alano and Paz have Puerto Rican heritage. The cliffhanger ending promises more to come.
Raw, delicate, and deeply caring. (content warning, resources) (Speculative fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 6, 2025
ISBN: 9780063240858
Page Count: 720
Publisher: Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
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
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