A thoughtful, well-executed coming-of-age story offering insights into the impact of pivotal life moments.
When her parents’ divorce upends her life, a 17-year-old girl decides to spend a year doing something that matters.
Cate Banville had to become a new person when she moved with her mom, leaving behind an Upper East Side private school and entering a public school in Miami. Cate believes that her perfect college plans are no longer attainable with the courses and extracurriculars available at her new school, where they force her to take drivers ed instead of AP calculus, and so she takes her mother’s advice and sets out to make the most of her senior year. After she witnesses a terrible accident while volunteering at a stable, helping children with disabilities ride horses, Cate is inspired by the EMTs who quickly and quietly take charge. Thus begins her journey with the junior EMS program. The supporting cast of characters is believable and likable, and strong bonds develop as, in addition to EMT school, Cate spends 12 hours a week riding in an ambulance, observing procedures and learning from the patients and other crew members. Readers will be drawn in by the sweetly developed romance—and heartache—and other loving relationships. Footnotes and other authorial intrusions feel engaging and bolster the novel’s voice. Cate, who is white, is a reflective and relatable narrator who sets a fast pace. There is ethnic diversity among secondary characters.
A thoughtful, well-executed coming-of-age story offering insights into the impact of pivotal life moments. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: June 13, 2023
ISBN: 9781665068444
Page Count: 317
Publisher: Blackstone
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2023
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
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in.
Black is back with another dark tale of Faerie, this one set in Faerie and launching a new trilogy.
Jude—broken, rebuilt, fueled by anger and a sense of powerlessness—has never recovered from watching her adoptive Faerie father murder her parents. Human Jude (whose brown hair curls and whose skin color is never described) both hates and loves Madoc, whose murderous nature is true to his Faerie self and who in his way loves her. Brought up among the Gentry, Jude has never felt at ease, but after a decade, Faerie has become her home despite the constant peril. Black’s latest looks at nature and nurture and spins a tale of court intrigue, bloodshed, and a truly messed-up relationship that might be the saving of Jude and the titular prince, who, like Jude, has been shaped by the cruelties of others. Fierce and observant Jude is utterly unaware of the currents that swirl around her. She fights, plots, even murders enemies, but she must also navigate her relationship with her complex family (human, Faerie, and mixed). This is a heady blend of Faerie lore, high fantasy, and high school drama, dripping with description that brings the dangerous but tempting world of Faerie to life.
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in. (Fantasy. 14-adult)Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-316-31027-7
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Sept. 25, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2017
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