A prettily executed account of a young woman learning how to spread her wings.
After her best friend’s death, a 17-year-old French girl makes the leap to becoming a feather artist in a Parisian boutique.
Alix Leclaire can rarely express her feelings, whether it’s not wanting her father to leave for weeks at a time to pursue his musical ambitions or her frustrations with best friend Jeanne, who prioritizes boys and partying over their friendship. After Jeanne dies in a car crash, Alix pushes past her shyness and approaches Mademoiselle Salomé, owner of the boutique Mille et Une Plume, about an apprenticeship, soon setting herself on a path of romance. Flirtatious Raven, Mademoiselle Salomé’s son, brings an element of fun into Alix’s life, while Blaise, a boy from Alix’s past, grounds her with his cozy qualities and talent with the guitar. But even as the boutique begins to craft wings for the Moulin Rouge, feeding Alix’s dreams, she must figure out what she wants to do and who she wants to be with. Although the book has a slight overabundance of tragic backstories, the melancholy tone is balanced against vivid descriptions of the fashion elements and moments of spontaneity to create a romantic, theatrical mood. French is sprinkled throughout, firmly cementing the Parisian setting. While full catharsis remains just out of reach, readers will remain intrigued by the locale and atmosphere until the finale. Alix and Blaise are coded white; Raven and his mother have brown skin.
A prettily executed account of a young woman learning how to spread her wings. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Jan. 16, 2024
ISBN: 9781643750286
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Algonquin
Review Posted Online: Oct. 7, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2023
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
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
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