A powerful story about misperceptions, reality, and the lives lived in between.
A high school junior fights to find his sister before times runs out.
Black 16-year-old Jayson Murphy hopes to make it one step closer to leaving the Ducts, a paycheck-to-paycheck neighborhood in Newport News, Virginia. Jay does his best to make his paternal grandmother, MiMi, proud. After his father passed from cancer and his mom’s struggles with addiction put her behind bars, MiMi stepped in for Jay and his older sister, Nic. While Jay tries to ease MiMi’s stress, Nic stays out all hours with her shady, drug-dealing boyfriend. Jay is tired of covering for Nic; after receiving an unintelligible call, he decides this time is the last. But after a few days, he realizes she is missing. Though his White best friend from school and the Black preacher’s daughter he teaches Sunday school with are willing to help, Jay has trouble trusting others to care as much as he does. This deftly written tale peels back the layers of a much-maligned neighborhood and its vibrant, complex residents—and exposes the dark, violent underbelly of White America. Ultimately, Jay’s community proves to be stronger and more powerful than any bad reputation. Harris’ book shines a light on the repercussions of institutionalized racism on Black communities and the plight of missing Black girls. Readers will ponder this story long after they turn the final page.
A powerful story about misperceptions, reality, and the lives lived in between. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Jan. 5, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-06-294589-1
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Sept. 28, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
PERSPECTIVES
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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