THE LIGHT BREAKING THROUGH

Curry’s coming-of-age novel, set in Key West, explores how bonds of youth can transform as one gets older.

Nine-year-old Jack Calder, a fourth-generation Bahamian American, meets Claire Winslow, a newcomer from Maine who’s moved to Key West after the death of her mother. She’s the same age as he is, and the island’s rhythms shape their childhood friendship as they spend afternoons fishing off docks, whispering secrets under banyan trees, and having dinners at Jack’s house, where his mother folds Claire seamlessly into the family, treating her as if she were her own daughter. As they grow up, their creative voices emerge: Jack becomes passionate about writing, and Claire’s artistic talents develop through painting; their art helps them both learn how to express their grief. Claire goes on to experience further tragedy, which the author handles with sensitivity, showing how her sorrow deepens her art and how Jack struggles to bridge the gap between friendship and love. Their friendship tips over the edge with a kiss on Christmas Tree Island, the heart of the narrative, and blossoms into romance as they move into Jack’s family’s home after graduation. Key West itself is effectively a character, portrayed in sensuous specificity: “On a bright, cloudless day, you can drift above the reef and look down 60 feet to the ocean floor. The sunlight dances across the sand, revealing every delicate ripple, every darting fish, and every brittle branch of coral in stunning detail.” At times, the prose dwells a little too heavily on description, which slows the pace, but the island’s atmosphere still becomes the novel’s most distinctive strength. What further elevates the work is the balance between nostalgia and forward motion; Claire yearns for the horizon while Jack remains rooted, but the book asserts that permanence can coexist with longing, when reframed as creation—their art, their shared spaces, and their fierce devotion to each other become the titular light in their lives.

A vivid tale of friendship, grief, and love.