A distressingly insightful vision of the future that also offers warmth and hope.
Sixteen-year-old Piper McBride searches for her place as a Deaf person in a mildly dystopian hearing world.
In a near-future Australia, the prime minister is a puppet of the Monsanto-like lab-engineered food corporation Organicore. Most people eat Organicore’s nutritionally balanced food products, believing the propaganda that “wild food” is dangerous. With food and fuel prices skyrocketing and supplies tanking, Piper decides to learn how to grow her own food. She meets Marley, a CODA, or child of a deaf adult, who introduces her to Australian Sign Language and to his Deaf mother. Piper, a Deaf person raised oral (with lip reading), and Marley, a signing CODA, must each figure out their relationships to the hearing and Deaf worlds and their relationship with one other. This gentle yet honest story is true to one Deaf experience and is a pleasure to read, with artistic designs on every page and full illustrations and personal touches scattered throughout. The text and illustrations also introduce readers to basic permaculture concepts, including how to start a compost pile and how to set up a mandala garden. Asphyxia skillfully interweaves subjects, including the diversity of Deaf language usage and access, Deaf interactions with the police, and having a friend in an abusive relationship. Piper and all other main characters are White.
A distressingly insightful vision of the future that also offers warmth and hope. (author's note, art journal ideas, note on ASL and Auslan) (Dystopian. 13-18)Pub Date: Nov. 30, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-77321-528-0
Page Count: 388
Publisher: Annick Press
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2021
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
A treat for mystery readers who enjoy being kept in suspense.
Everyone believes that Salil Singh killed his girlfriend, Andrea Bell, five years ago—except Pippa Fitz-Amobi.
Pip has known and liked Sal since childhood; he’d supported her when she was being bullied in middle school. For her senior capstone project, Pip researches the disappearance of former Fairview High student Andie, last seen on April 18, 2014, by her younger sister, Becca. The original investigation concluded with most of the evidence pointing to Sal, who was found dead in the woods, apparently by suicide. Andie’s body was never recovered, and Sal was assumed by most to be guilty of abduction and murder. Unable to ignore the gaps in the case, Pip sets out to prove Sal’s innocence, beginning with interviewing his younger brother, Ravi. With his help, Pip digs deeper, unveiling unsavory facts about Andie and the real reason Sal’s friends couldn’t provide him with an alibi. But someone is watching, and Pip may be in more danger than she realizes. Pip’s sleuthing is both impressive and accessible. Online articles about the case and interview transcripts are provided throughout, and Pip’s capstone logs offer insights into her thought processes as new evidence and suspects arise. Jackson’s debut is well-executed and surprises readers with a connective web of interesting characters and motives. Pip and Andie are white, and Sal is of Indian descent.
A treat for mystery readers who enjoy being kept in suspense. (Mystery. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-9848-9636-0
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Oct. 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2019
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
