A stirring close-up of a family haunted by emotional trauma.
After years of alcohol and drug abuse, John reunites with his shattered family.
A terrible accident has left John’s brother, Ryan, with severe brain damage, and the aftermath is destroying the family. Due to his destructive behavior as a 10-year-old, John was sent to live with his father, away from his sister, his mother, and Ryan, who must use a wheelchair. John spent many of those years self-anesthetizing with booze and pot. Now a senior in high school, John has returned home to face his family, escape the loss of his girlfriend, and try to stay clean. Every member of this damaged, white family struggles with crippling guilt over what happened to Ryan, and they are all bungling love, lashing out at one another. Despite extensive support from teachers, a therapist, a parole officer, and an exceptionally interesting girl, Emily, John resorts again and again to his chemical crutches. Meanwhile, Ryan can’t feed himself or walk and has violent outbursts, and their mom has developed a troubling cough. When another near tragedy occurs, the family is shaken from its cloudy malaise into clarity. Through John’s first-person voice, by turns vulnerable and angry, the story effectively builds up to an account of the accident from the outside in, very gradually revealing what actually occurred the day of Ryan’s injury.
A stirring close-up of a family haunted by emotional trauma. (Fiction. 12-18)Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4926-3588-8
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Aug. 29, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2016
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
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
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