An eclectic, poignant, and introspective treasure trove.
Ten acclaimed YA authors explore the artistry and emotion behind the human instinct to collect.
This anthology centers around the question: “Why do we collect things?” Each story features a different type of collection, from the tangible (glass bluebirds and fandom memorabilia) to the experiential (skateboarding in empty swimming pools) and the intangible (misery, doubts, dreams, and moments that you wish could last forever). The characters discover strengths and yearned-for connections to themselves and others through what they collect. When men aggressively pursue her beautiful mother, a Latine teen living in white suburbia protects herself and her home in Anna-Marie McLemore’s “Play House.” In “Take It From Me” by David Levithan, first love makes a nonbinary teen question the purpose and the impact of their collection that’s curated from objects stolen from other collections. Randy Ribay’s “The White Savior Does Not Save the Day” centers a Filipino and white teen who collects scripts from a canceled superhero show and crosses dimensions, searching for clarity about herself and her absent white mother. Cory McCarthy presents “museum of misery,” an emotionally raw, illustrated tour through a museum of trauma and internalized self-hatred. Embracing weirdness, many of the stories defy genre categories, blending reality with fantastical metaphors. Although honest about the weight of complex social themes, including systemic injustice, gun violence, abuse, and self-harm, this anthology balances heaviness with hope. Across the stories, the cast of characters includes a diverse range of identities.
An eclectic, poignant, and introspective treasure trove. (Anthology. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 19, 2023
ISBN: 9780593620281
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2023
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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