Sachs (Ghosts in the Family, 1995, etc.) tells readers that it's been a bad year for Olivia, 13—her mother left, so she and her father move in with her depressed, recently widowed grandmother—and that's about the extent of the action in this tired novel about the consequences of divorce. Readers wade through nothing more than a series of conversations about how neglected Olivia feels and how her cardboard cut-out parents don't pay attention to her. Within her chronicle of pouting, sulking, and general self-pity, there's no character development, and there's no emotion in Sachs's detached narrative. The dialogue between Olivia and her peers is stilted and dated—imagine a 13-year-old boy describing a girl as "marvelous." The climax comes when Olivia conquers her fear of dogs by rescuing one she believes is neglected. Readers are supposed to believe that Olivia has grown and changed, but where's the evidence? (Fiction 10+)
Pub Date: June 1, 1997
ISBN: 0-525-45787-9
Page Count: 180
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 1997
A sweet and joyful romance times two.
Natalya Fox is ready for change but afraid of making the wrong decision; luckily she doesn’t have to choose in this parallel-timelines rom-com à la Sliding Doors.
Seventeen-year-old Natalya Fox has been given the choice of spending the summer at home with her father in New York City or moving in with her mother in Los Angeles. Manhattan is the safer option and would keep Natalya in her all-too-familiar comfort zone, but it does come with the possibility of romance with the girl Natalya has been crushing on for ages, known to her only as the Redhead due to Natalya’s inability to introduce herself. Los Angeles offers an internship and a chance to reconnect with her mother, and the other new intern, a boy her mom describes as cute, could be an unexpected perk. So Natalya makes her choice—and then she makes her other choice. Split between two parallel timelines, the novel shows readers Natalya falling in love, exploring her post-graduation plans, and finding new ways of connecting with her parents in both cities. Each of the timelines is exciting and heartwarming, although the Los Angeles love interest reads as more complex than the one back East, and the New York storyline lacks significant conflict, giving the West Coast one more depth overall. Bisexual Natalya is Jewish, and subjects such as keeping kosher, being queer and Jewish, and observing Shabbat are thoughtfully woven in.
A sweet and joyful romance times two. (Romance. 13-18)Pub Date: June 13, 2023
ISBN: 9781250871640
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Review Posted Online: March 13, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2023
A Mexican teen risks everything to emigrate illegally to the U.S. to join his family and find a new life. Biding his time for six years in a backwater Mexican village, Miguel, his younger sister Elena and his grandmother survive on money his parents send monthly from California. Miguel is convinced his future also lies across la línea in California. On Miguel’s 15th birthday, his father finally sends money and instructions for Miguel to head north. But Miguel’s careful plans disintegrate when he discovers Elena has followed him. After their bus is diverted south and their money stolen, they are on their own and their only option is to steal a ride on the infamous mata gente, a freight train heading north known as the “people killer.” If they survive the ride, they still face a two-day desert trek across the U.S. border. Despite their brother-sister antipathy, Miguel and Elena stick together, escaping one danger after another to cross the border and discover what lies on the other side. A nail-biting real-life adventure. (author’s note) (Fiction. 12+)
Pub Date: April 1, 2006
ISBN: 1-59643-154-7
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Deborah Brodie/Roaring Brook
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2006
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