An intelligent, tense psychological drama.
A kidnapped girl returns home after six years.
Now 16, Amy MacArthur must readjust to life with her family while also coping with the space left by her cousin and best friend, Dee, who was also kidnapped. Although the white girl physically returns alone, Amy is accompanied by secrets she can’t reveal to anyone. She can’t divulge Dee’s whereabouts, the kidnapper’s identity, or where she’s been for the past six years; to do so will bring harm to two people who have become very precious to her: Dee’s children. Details of the girls’ abduction and isolation unfold slowly as introspective Amy gradually reveals the heartbreaking details of her escape and Dee’s fate. Amy’s narration moves back and forth in time, recounting her experiences both after her return and during her captivity. Although Amy is a sympathetic character, the tight focus of the text makes it hard to see how Dee changes from a fun-loving, talkative girl of 12 to an angry, empty shell of an 18-year-old. Lee, Dee’s sister, is unbelievably bubbly for a girl whose sister is still missing; she wants to take Amy shopping and partying. The villain of the piece, Kyle, the creepy, doll-worshipping rapist kidnapper, is downright scary—with a huge body, small head, and deceptively clownish smile, he is an overgrown toddler prone to tantrums and all the more terrifying for it.
An intelligent, tense psychological drama. (Fiction. 13-18)Pub Date: Oct. 11, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-101-99680-5
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2016
Eden’s emotionally raw narration is compelling despite its solipsism. (Fiction. 14-18)
In the three years following Eden’s brutal rape by her brother’s best friend, Kevin, she descends into anger, isolation, and promiscuity.
Eden’s silence about the assault is cemented by both Kevin’s confident assurance that if she tells anyone, “No one will ever believe you. You know that. No one. Not ever,” and a chillingly believable death threat. For the remainder of Eden’s freshman year, she withdraws from her family and becomes increasingly full of hatred for Kevin and the world she feels failed to protect her. But when a friend mentions that she’s “reinventing” herself, Eden embarks on a hopeful plan to do the same. She begins her sophomore year with new clothes and friendly smiles for her fellow students, which attract the romantic attentions of a kind senior athlete. But, bizarrely, Kevin’s younger sister goes on a smear campaign to label Eden a “totally slutty disgusting whore,” which sends Eden back toward self-destruction. Eden narrates in a tightly focused present tense how she withdraws again from nearly everyone and attempts to find comfort (or at least oblivion) through a series of nearly anonymous sexual encounters. This self-centeredness makes her relationships with other characters feel underdeveloped and even puzzling at times. Absent ethnic and cultural markers, Eden and her family and classmates are likely default white.
Eden’s emotionally raw narration is compelling despite its solipsism. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: March 22, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4814-4935-9
Page Count: 384
Publisher: McElderry
Review Posted Online: Dec. 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2016
Affirming, uplifting, and thoughtful.
A college-bound teen with cerebral palsy learns to advocate for herself.
Even though her friends are buzzing about senior year and their college plans, Greek American Euphemia Galanos can’t muster the same enthusiasm. For Effie, an aspiring journalist, choosing a college is fraught with additional variables: Are the dorms wheelchair accessible? How easily can she navigate campus? Such concerns threaten to derail her dream of attending New York’s prestigious Prospect University, home to an excellent journalism program…and the choice of her crush, Wilder. As if Effie doesn’t have enough on her plate, she faces discrimination from Mill City High’s administration—and this time, her mother insists she manage things herself. But Effie isn’t used to speaking up, and her efforts go awry. How can she show her mom she can handle moving from Minnesota to New York if she can’t be assertive? And will she ever get the chance to tell Wilder how she feels? Forrest, also a wheelchair user with CP, explores the role of media representation in developing self-confidence and refreshingly highlights the importance of disabled peers. Readers will appreciate Effie’s conflicted, insightful introspection and appraisals of her options; those who struggle to speak up will empathize as she finds her voice. Supportive friends and family and a sweet romance add warmth. Wilder reads White; there’s some racial diversity among the supporting cast members.
Affirming, uplifting, and thoughtful. (Fiction. 13-18)Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9781338813838
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: March 13, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2023
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