A resilient protagonist carries this sometimes-profound tale of incarceration and survival.
An unjustly imprisoned Mexican immigrant to the United States fights to get back to her baby daughter in Frazier’s debut novel.
In 2003, teenager Juana Ivanov lands in a California prison, just three years after leaving Mexico. A U.S. court ruled that she left her abusive husband to die after he fell down the stairs; she fled the scene, resulting in a six-year prison sentence for voluntary manslaughter. Behind bars, she’s under constant threat as she struggles to grasp the workings of prison life, including the various factions of guards and gangs. She soon finds that befriending one inmate may earn her a new enemy. Her greatest worries, however, are for Katrina, her baby girl, who’s currently under her sister’s care in Mexico. If her sibling moves to Arizona as planned, Katrina’s bereaved paternal grandmother may file for custody, which could lead to a legal battle that undocumented Juana just might lose. As she struggles to survive her sentence, she finds that getting letters to her sister is difficult. She tries hard to stay below everyone’s radar, but there’s a good chance that she’ll eventually have to protect herself in a physical confrontation. Frazier masterfully limns Juana’s waning hope as she comes to terms with the fact the government that’s locked her away will likely kick her out of the country after she’s released. This story unfolds less than two years after the 9/11 attacks, when immigrants all over America suddenly found themselves under increased scrutiny. This makes for a persistently tense story, as sympathetic Juana has nowhere to turn for help, even as she sees the capacity for good in many of her fellow inmates. The author offers several unforgettable moments along the way, such as Juana catching glimpses of other people’s everyday lives as she rides to jail; at another point, a missing utensil from the prison dining area seems certain to return to the story as a shank. The ending is both narratively and emotionally satisfying.
A resilient protagonist carries this sometimes-profound tale of incarceration and survival.Pub Date: June 6, 2023
ISBN: 9781684632046
Page Count: 376
Publisher: SparkPress
Review Posted Online: Jan. 10, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind.
In this companion novel to 2013’s If He Had Been With Me, three characters tell their sides of the story.
Finn’s narrative starts three days before his death. He explores the progress of his unrequited love for best friend Autumn up until the day he finally expresses his feelings. Finn’s story ends with his tragic death, which leaves his close friends devastated, unmoored, and uncertain how to go on. Jack’s section follows, offering a heartbreaking look at what it’s like to live with grief. Jack works to overcome the anger he feels toward Sylvie, the girlfriend Finn was breaking up with when he died, and Autumn, the girl he was preparing to build his life around (but whom Jack believed wasn’t good enough for Finn). But when Jack sees how Autumn’s grief matches his own, it changes their understanding of one another. Autumn’s chapters trace her life without Finn as readers follow her struggles with mental health and balancing love and loss. Those who have read the earlier book will better connect with and feel for these characters, particularly since they’ll have a more well-rounded impression of Finn. The pain and anger is well written, and the novel highlights the most troublesome aspects of young adulthood: overconfidence sprinkled with heavy insecurities, fear-fueled decisions, bad communication, and brash judgments. Characters are cued white.
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind. (author’s note, content warning) (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9781728276229
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
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