An inspired, cluttered, wholly original tale.
Following the death of her mother at the hands of the military government, an 18-year-old Argentinian girl escapes to desolate Patagonia, finding refuge in a finishing school besieged by hostile spirits.
The year is 1978. Mavi ends up teaching at the infamous Vaccaro School, led by the enigmatic Carmela De Vaccaro. Marred by a curse that wiped out its inhabitants 60 years before, and surrounded by an icy hellscape, the school sits atop land seized from the fictional Zapuche people. As she grows closer to her nine students (the 10th girl is missing), Mavi, whose father had Zapuche roots, uncovers more about the school’s grisly origins, its eccentric occupants, and the ghastly Otros (Others) who feed on the inhabitants as they sleep. She soon befriends Carmela’s son, Domenico, a cruel, handsome boy who seems to change overnight thanks in part to Angel, a benevolent Other who’s curious about Mavi—and the mysterious 10th girl. The story delivers numerous twists and turns, each a deliriously unreal blow. Though the narrative drags at times and some quieter moments feel needlessly long, debut author Faring spins a deceptively simple haunted tale via the alternating viewpoints of Mavi and Angel. Anachronistic hints gesture toward what’s really happening at Vaccaro School, culminating in an unanticipated final twist that’s sure to be divisive. While the author draws attention to the oppression of Indigenous peoples, the treatment of this subject is cursory.
An inspired, cluttered, wholly original tale. (Gothic horror. 14-19)Pub Date: Sept. 24, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-250-30450-6
Page Count: 464
Publisher: Imprint
Review Posted Online: July 12, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away.
A Mexican American boy takes on heavy responsibilities when his family is torn apart.
Mateo’s life is turned upside down the day U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents show up unsuccessfully seeking his Pa at his New York City bodega. The Garcias live in fear until the day both parents are picked up; his Pa is taken to jail and his Ma to a detention center. The adults around Mateo offer support to him and his 7-year-old sister, Sophie, however, he knows he is now responsible for caring for her and the bodega as well as trying to survive junior year—that is, if he wants to fulfill his dream to enter the drama program at the Tisch School of the Arts and become an actor. Mateo’s relationships with his friends Kimmie and Adam (a potential love interest) also suffer repercussions as he keeps his situation a secret. Kimmie is half Korean (her other half is unspecified) and Adam is Italian American; Mateo feels disconnected from them, less American, and with worries they can’t understand. He talks himself out of choosing a safer course of action, a decision that deepens the story. Mateo’s self-awareness and inner monologue at times make him seem older than 16, and, with significant turmoil in the main plot, some side elements feel underdeveloped. Aleman’s narrative joins the ranks of heart-wrenching stories of migrant families who have been separated.
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-7595-5605-8
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
This grittily provocative debut explores the horrors of self-harm and the healing power of artistic expression.
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
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