A heartbreaking story of starvation, cruelty, and survival.
In Cole’s historical novel, a Ukrainian family struggles to survive Stalin’s murderous campaign to enforce farm collectivization during the 1930s.
It’s 1930 in the small Ukrainian village near the Dnieper River where Oksana Kovalenko lives with her parents, Nadya and Mikhail, and her older brother Peter. Oksana, a lively schoolgirl, is excited about the beginning of the new academic year, but there’s tension in the air. In school, a classmate reveals that the Soviet army has appropriated farms in a nearby village. In 1931, a dark cloud of fear hangs over Oksana’s village, though she and her best friend, Anya Yovenko, still play in the fields and swear to each other that they’ll always fight to retain Ukrainian customs, religion, and language. Life becomes increasingly more difficult as Stalin increases the amount of grain that farmers must give to the state until the village farmers find it difficult to feed even their own families. The penalties for disobeying the Soviet dictates, or even being accused of such, become increasingly severe: Townsfolk are beaten by the Soviets, arrested, and sent to frigid gulags, never to be heard from again. In a betrayal of their vows, Anya joins the Komsomol, the Soviet youth group (“They promised always to be friends, but now that promise was broken”). Cole’s disturbing portrait of Soviet brutality is lightened only by Oksana and Peter’s determination to survive, hold on to their traditions, and find a way to help their fellow villagers, risking their own lives in the endeavor. The narrative, scribed for YA readers, is a mix of tumultuous Ukrainian and Russian history with an overarching theme of family love and devotion. Though the subject matter is weighty, the occasionally repetitive and emotive prose is best suited to the younger end of the YA audience. The novel captures the sweet naïveté and innocence of young teenagers who find themselves carrying adult burdens.
A heartbreaking story of starvation, cruelty, and survival.Pub Date: April 13, 2024
ISBN: 9798989997626
Page Count: 290
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: May 8, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind.
In this companion novel to 2013’s If He Had Been With Me, three characters tell their sides of the story.
Finn’s narrative starts three days before his death. He explores the progress of his unrequited love for best friend Autumn up until the day he finally expresses his feelings. Finn’s story ends with his tragic death, which leaves his close friends devastated, unmoored, and uncertain how to go on. Jack’s section follows, offering a heartbreaking look at what it’s like to live with grief. Jack works to overcome the anger he feels toward Sylvie, the girlfriend Finn was breaking up with when he died, and Autumn, the girl he was preparing to build his life around (but whom Jack believed wasn’t good enough for Finn). But when Jack sees how Autumn’s grief matches his own, it changes their understanding of one another. Autumn’s chapters trace her life without Finn as readers follow her struggles with mental health and balancing love and loss. Those who have read the earlier book will better connect with and feel for these characters, particularly since they’ll have a more well-rounded impression of Finn. The pain and anger is well written, and the novel highlights the most troublesome aspects of young adulthood: overconfidence sprinkled with heavy insecurities, fear-fueled decisions, bad communication, and brash judgments. Characters are cued white.
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind. (author’s note, content warning) (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9781728276229
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
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