Moving and inspirational.
Unwelcome changes come at a pivotal time for one high school junior in Texas.
Chidera Edwards has always had two constants in her life: track and her mother, a Black woman from Louisiana. So she’s scared and upset when her mother, who’s weathering a serious financial crisis, sends her to live temporarily with her Nigerian immigrant father halfway through the school year—the very same neglectful father Dera has barely seen since her parents got divorced when she was 6. On top of that, her new school may have more funds than her old one, but they don’t have a girls’ track team—and the timing couldn’t be worse if she hopes to get a sports scholarship for college. Dera, aware of her Title IX rights, gains permission to train with the boys’ team, but she must prove herself to them while also adapting to living with her father. One bright spot is bonding with irresistibly attractive teammate Gael Garcia, whose Afro-Colombian parents were deported. Dera also navigates encounters with a standoffish new classmate, a Black girl whom she expected to bond with, and she realizes that sometimes when we stand up for ourselves, we help others get ahead, too. The story features well-developed characters readers will cheer for and cry over. The action and emotion are balanced, as are the internal and external conflicts. Debut author Egbe’s writing is exceptional, capturing the nuances of adolescence, identity, and resilience.
Moving and inspirational. (Fiction. 12-18)Pub Date: May 20, 2025
ISBN: 9781335009937
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: today
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
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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