A runaway and a bandit in search of new lives team up to steal war plans from the Confederacy.
When Grace, a white trans woman and aspiring actress, runs away from conscription into the Georgia Infantry, she finds herself caught in the talons of the Ghost Hawk, a half-woman, half-hawk demon bandit—or so the rumors say. Despite the wild stories, the mysterious Ghost Hawk turns out to be a “short brown lady” named Flor who dreams of living out the rest of her life on her own patch of land with some goats as soon as she gets the money from one last, big heist. With the help of Grace’s acting skills and understanding of upper-class, white Georgian culture, they plot to steal secrets from a backroom meeting at a cotillion and sell them to the Union. Gillman (Steven Universe: Punching Up, 2018, etc.) captures the Southwestern atmosphere with a soft, dusty color palette. Panels full of movement and vivid character expression create an immersive reading experience. The narrative unites two women with different backgrounds, depicting a relationship in which they support one another. Their romance develops naturally through moments of flirtation and fond glances. An open-ended but still satisfying resolution suggests a bright, hopeful future while leaving room to imagine more adventures for Grace and Flor.
An engrossing escapade with a heart-stealing queer romance. (annotations) (Graphic historical fiction. 12-adult)Pub Date: Sept. 3, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5124-4000-3
Page Count: 104
Publisher: Graphic Universe
Review Posted Online: June 9, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2019
Categories: GENERAL GRAPHIC NOVELS & COMICS | TEENS & YOUNG ADULT FICTION
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
This tear-jerker will leave readers wanting to follow the next chapter in Darius’ life.
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Darius Kellner suffers from depression, bullying by high school jocks, and a father who seems to always be disappointed in him.
When Darius’ grandfather becomes terminally ill, Darius, along with his parents and younger sister, travels to Iran for the first time in his life. Iranian on his mother’s side and white American on his father’s side, Darius never quite fits in. He’s mocked for his name and nerdy interests at Chapel Hill High School in Portland, Oregon, and doesn’t speak enough Farsi to communicate with his Iranian relatives either. When he arrives in Iran, learning to play the Persian card game Rook, socializing, and celebrating Nowruz with a family he had never properly met before is all overwhelming and leaves Darius wondering if he’ll ever truly belong anywhere. But all that changes when Darius meets Sohrab, a Bahá’í boy, in Yazd. Sohrab teaches Darius what friendship is really about: loyalty, honesty, and someone who has your back in a football (soccer) match. For the first time in a long time, Darius learns to love himself no matter what external forces attempt to squash his confidence. Khorram’s debut novel is filled with insight into the lives of teens, weaving together the reality of living with mental illness while also dealing with identity and immigration politics.
This tear-jerker will leave readers wanting to follow the next chapter in Darius’ life. (Fiction. 12-adult)Pub Date: Aug. 28, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-525-55296-3
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: June 17, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2018
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PROFILES
PROFILES
This grittily provocative debut explores the horrors of self-harm and the healing power of artistic expression.
37
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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
Categories: TEENS & YOUNG ADULT FICTION | TEENS & YOUNG ADULT SOCIAL THEMES
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