A thought-provoking exploration of art as an expression of love and pain.
Take a contemporary San Francisco, add an undertone of classic Romeo and Juliet, some grit and viscera, and this story of two remarkable teens is the result.
Beatrix, 18, isn’t your average artist; she does anatomical studies and wants to attend school to become a medical illustrator. She feels her only chance is winning a scholarship by drawing from life—or rather death—a real cadaver. Bex is intensely focused, but then she meets Jack, and her focus expands. Jack is also an artist, notorious for his beautifully executed graffiti—and wanted by the police. Beatrix is intrigued by his wit, Buddhist beliefs, and “retro-rockabilly” looks. However, there’s a sorrowful secret in Jack’s family that, to Bex’s initial consternation, causes him to be mercurial. Their romance flourishes as understanding grows into a deepening respect for one another. When the relationship becomes sexual, they are careful to spend time tenderly discussing it first. Bex narrates in a trenchant past tense, her wit on display in both dialogue and exposition, and art becomes both a point of connection for the two lovers and their weapon. In the face of family opposition to their relationship, Beatrix and Jack strive to convey that art is meaningful and healing for both creator and beholder.
A thought-provoking exploration of art as an expression of love and pain. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Nov. 3, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-250-06645-9
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2015
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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