A warm, cozy read.
Two teen gymnasts in a small city in Illinois navigate friendship, love, and loss.
It’s 1996, and Riley, a white-presenting, hard-of-hearing girl from California, is the newest member on the gymnastics team. Kota, a biracial (white and Japanese) girl with an androgynous, punky style, is curious about Riley—and even a bit smitten. While Riley struggles to live without her father, who died several years ago, as well as the friends back home who no longer keep in touch, Kota must learn to be brave in both gymnastics and life. Despite dealing with some painful emotions, the story feels gentle, with characters who all mean well and try their best. The illustrations are primarily an attractive grayscale with blue and green accents. The figures and faces are expressive but have an unpolished quality that detracts slightly from their impact. The backgrounds and settings are much stronger, however, creating atmosphere with the careful addition of warm colors. In Nadine’s 1990s Middle America, people are nonchalant about queerness. Riley is portrayed without a signing Deaf community. Riley’s and Kota’s storylines wrap up nicely in this sweet, tender story about the importance of courage and connection, which will appeal to readers who enjoy nostalgia, gymnastics, or loving queer friendships.
A warm, cozy read. (Graphic fiction. 12-17)Pub Date: Sept. 10, 2024
ISBN: 9781637154960
Page Count: 208
Publisher: Oni Press
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2024
A meditation on a timely subject that never forgets to put its characters and their stories first
An Afghani-Australian teen named Mina earns a scholarship to a prestigious private school and meets Michael, whose family opposes allowing Muslim refugees and immigrants into the country.
Dual points of view are presented in this moving and intelligent contemporary novel set in Australia. Eleventh-grader Mina is smart and self-possessed—her mother and stepfather (her biological father was murdered in Afghanistan) have moved their business and home across Sydney in order for her to attend Victoria College. She’s determined to excel there, even though being surrounded by such privilege is a culture shock for her. When she meets white Michael, the two are drawn to each other even though his close-knit, activist family espouses a political viewpoint that, though they insist it is merely pragmatic, is unquestionably Islamophobic. Tackling hard topics head-on, Abdel-Fattah explores them fully and with nuance. True-to-life dialogue and realistic teen social dynamics both deepen the tension and provide levity. While Mina and Michael’s attraction seems at first unlikely, the pair’s warmth wins out, and readers will be swept up in their love story and will come away with a clearer understanding of how bias permeates the lives of those targeted by it.
A meditation on a timely subject that never forgets to put its characters and their stories first . (Fiction. 12-17)Pub Date: May 9, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-338-11866-7
Page Count: 402
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Feb. 19, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
PROFILES
Despite some missteps, this will appeal to readers who enjoy a fresh and realistic teen voice.
A teenage, not-so-lonely loner endures the wilds of high school in Austin, Texas.
Norris Kaplan, the protagonist of Philippe’s debut novel, is a hypersweaty, uber-snarky black, Haitian, French-Canadian pushing to survive life in his new school. His professor mom’s new tenure-track job transplants Norris mid–school year, and his biting wit and sarcasm are exposed through his cataloging of his new world in a field guide–style burn book. He’s greeted in his new life by an assortment of acquaintances, Liam, who is white and struggling with depression; Maddie, a self-sacrificing white cheerleader with a heart of gold; and Aarti, his Indian-American love interest who offers connection. Norris’ ego, fueled by his insecurities, often gets in the way of meaningful character development. The scenes showcasing his emotional growth are too brief and, despite foreshadowing, the climax falls flat because he still gets incredible personal access to people he’s hurt. A scene where Norris is confronted by his mother for getting drunk and belligerent with a white cop is diluted by his refusal or inability to grasp the severity of the situation and the resultant minor consequences. The humor is spot-on, as is the representation of the black diaspora; the opportunity for broader conversations about other topics is there, however, the uneven buildup of detailed, meaningful exchanges and the glibness of Norris’ voice detract.
Despite some missteps, this will appeal to readers who enjoy a fresh and realistic teen voice. (Fiction. 13-16)Pub Date: Jan. 8, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-06-282411-0
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 14, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
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