The tragic tales of two pairs of lovers weave in and out in this tale based on a hoary classic. One plotline retells Longfellow’s “Evangeline,” from the third-person point of view of Gabriel, as he woos, weds and loses his beloved in the 1755 deportation of the Acadians. The second is the first-person narration of Eva, a present-day teen who has fallen for Gabe, an angst-ridden version of the earlier Gabriel, though Shaw has inexplicably moved the action from Canada to northern Maine. Where Gabriel is dragged away from his sweetheart, Gabe leaves more willingly; his motivation for doing so is hazy. Eva is left to try to figure out where he has gone and why. Though she heads off to a work-study program downstate, she never stops searching for him, a role reversal since Gabriel does most of the seeking in his version. Hackneyed dialogue, superficial character development and the failure to fully capture the setting all diminish this effort. It may appeal to romance readers in need of a fix but is unlikely to entertain a broader audience. (Romance/historical fiction. 11 & up)
Pub Date: May 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-8109-8718-0
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Amulet/Abrams
Review Posted Online: Jan. 3, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2010
Exactly what the title promises.
A grieving teen’s devotion to romance films might ruin her chances at actual romance.
Liz Buxbaum has always adored rom-coms, not least for helping her still feel close to her screenwriter mother, who died when she was little. Liz hopes that her senior year might turn into a real-life romantic fantasy, as an old crush has moved back to town, cuter and nicer than ever. Surely she can get Michael to ask her to prom. If only Wes, the annoying boy next door, would help her with her scheming! This charming, fluffy concoction manages to pack into one goofy plot every conceivable trope, from fake dating to the makeover to the big misunderstanding. Creative, quirky, daydreaming Liz is just shy of an annoying stereotype, saved by a dry wit and unresolved grief and anger. Wes makes for a delightful bad boy with a good heart, and supporting characters—including a sassy best friend, a perfect popular rival, even a (not really) evil stepmother—all get the opportunity to transcend their roles. The only villain here is Liz’s lovelorn imagination, provoking her into foolish lies that cause actual hurt feelings; but she is sufficiently self-aware to make amends just in time for the most important trope of all: a blissfully happy ending. All characters seem to be White by default.
Exactly what the title promises. (Romance. 12-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-6762-0
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK TO SCREEN
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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