Fun pop cultural references can’t make up for a lack of plot.
Two boys fall in love in Riddle’s YA novella.
It’s 1958, and 17-year-old Billy Sanders is obsessed with James Dean. (“Not only did I try to act like him, I dressed like him and cut my hair like him, too.”) The students at Hollywood High School nickname him “James,” and even the teachers tell him they see a resemblance. One day, Billy—a self-proclaimed “peeper” in the boys’ locker room—gets an intimate view of 17-year-old Jason Blue, who happens to look exactly like Elvis. The two converse, and Jason admits he’s been noticing Billy for a few weeks. Jason asks Billy on a date to a lookout point, where the two kiss and then dive headlong into a fast-moving relationship. (Billy brings Jason home to meet his parents the next night; Jason brings Billy home during the week.) They go dancing at a gay club on Halloween and Jason introduces Billy to some of his friends (who, conveniently, happen to resemble Paul Newman, Montgomery Clift, Kirk Douglas, and Ricky Nelson). And then they just sort of…hang out. This is the story’s main problem: Nothing actually happens. The narration resembles entries in a teenager’s diary, offering an abundance of references to popular music and actors of the 1950s. The brief nature of many of the scenes (some of which summarize entire months in just a few sentences) results in a lack of depth; there are no real stakes, and none of the characters display much personality. At one point, a hint of engaging drama—in the form of a fellow student threatening to tell everyone about the boys’ relationship—seems to emerge, but it’s dropped immediately and never surfaces again.
Fun pop cultural references can’t make up for a lack of plot.Pub Date: March 3, 2021
ISBN: 9798713897895
Page Count: 62
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: Sept. 18, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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
A delightfully autumnal small-town romance buoyed by strong characterization.
Ellis Mitchell has her whole life planned out.
Heading into senior year, Ellis plans to study hard and crush it at the journalism internship her media executive dad got her, paving the way for her acceptance to Columbia University. But then Ellis’ parents announce they’re separating—and that Ellis and her mom will be heading to Bramble Falls to stay with her aunt and cousin. Furious that her careful plans have been upended, Ellis struggles to settle into the small, charming Connecticut town even as everyone around her gears up for the annual Falling Leaves Festival. Ellis runs into Cooper Barnett—her long-ago summer friend from visits to Aunt Naomi and cousin Sloane—who’s grown up to be very handsome. But Cooper isn’t pleased to see Ellis; he’s cold and curt, and she has no idea why. Wilson’s YA debut is chock-full of charm. Readers will swoon at Cooper’s and Ellis’ developing feelings following their frosty reunion and sympathize with Ellis’ difficulties even as Bramble Falls grows on her. She must choose between small-town community ties and big-city ambitions—between what her dad wants for her and what she really wants. Ellis’ relationships with her mom, aunt, and cousin are lovely and aspirational. The depiction of Bramble Falls is evocative, and the book contains enough seasonal delights to satisfy even the most devoted pumpkin spice latte lover. Main characters are cued white.
A delightfully autumnal small-town romance buoyed by strong characterization. (Romance. 13-18)Pub Date: Sept. 2, 2025
ISBN: 9781665975209
Page Count: 352
Publisher: McElderry
Review Posted Online: June 13, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
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