An ambitious exploration of addiction and grief that ultimately doesn’t coalesce.
A teen boy struggles after his best friend dies.
High school senior Hakeem Hawkins has been clean for four months; he’s finished therapy and is attending weekly Narcotics Anonymous meetings. But when Miles Parker is hit by a bus, things stop making sense. Everyone says Miles died by suicide, but Hakeem can’t believe it. He and Miles had an agreement: They’d send a red flag emoji if they ever needed to connect immediately. Hakeem starts to blame himself for missing the signs that Miles was having such a hard time. When Eliza Fitzpatrick joins NA, she provides Hakeem with support and demonstrates the kind of understanding only someone with their own darkness possesses, and the two grow closer. Then Hakeem gets a mysterious phone call from beyond the grave—it’s Miles, saying he was murdered, and he wants Hakeem to discover the culprit. Hakeem becomes set on figuring out what really happened to Miles, no matter the consequences; as someone in recovery, he realizes that everyone’s watching him for signs of a relapse. Although Coles explores many intriguing themes, they’re not woven together cohesively, and the novel feels disjointed. While the supernatural element is interesting, it doesn’t play a clear role in the story and as a result feels forced. Eliza is white, and Hakeem and other main characters are Black; the story doesn’t delve into culturally specific aspects of substance abuse and trauma.
An ambitious exploration of addiction and grief that ultimately doesn’t coalesce. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: June 3, 2025
ISBN: 9781546125563
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: April 19, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2025
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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