A painfully real account of a teen’s inhumane treatment, with mixed mental health representation.
A friendless, bullied teen finds healing through weightlifting.
At 6 feet tall and fat, Marcella Boucher is friendless and self-loathing. At school she faces constant, sometimes physical, torment, and at home, her gym-owning, ostensibly loving parents enforce dangerous calorie restrictions. She’s been making out with popular boy Lou, but only in secret. In fact, Lou is dating Vivi, a popular, skinny cheerleader. Marcella is humiliated after she asks Lou out in public—he not only rejects her, but Vivi also adds her own scornful insults. Her distress is so great that she tries to hang herself, an event that’s described in detail. After the aborted attempt, Marcella’s father forces her to visit a “board certified therapist specializing in eating disorders and childhood obesity.” Meanwhile, a surprising friendship with Jason, the new boy at school, leads Marcella to a women’s weightlifting gym, where she gains self-confidence. Jason, who’s in foster care, has struggles of his own. Marcella’s emotional growth arc also follows her eating disorder therapy to address her binging. However, her suicide attempt (provoked by vicious bullying at school, enablement of that mistreatment by the administration, and abusive fat-shaming at home) is not adequately addressed in therapy, and it’s seemingly not taken seriously enough by the adults around her, despite the livid bruises around her throat. All major characters appear to be white.
A painfully real account of a teen’s inhumane treatment, with mixed mental health representation. (mental health resources) (Fiction. 14-17)Pub Date: March 7, 2024
ISBN: 9780807504123
Page Count: 368
Publisher: AW Teen
Review Posted Online: Dec. 16, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
Full of drama, emotional turmoil, and high stakes.
What happens to the world after the dust from a revolution has settled?
Friends Annie and Lee were children from very different circles when Atreus killed Lee’s father, dragonlord Leon Stormscourge, ending the uprising on the bloodiest day in Callipolis’ history. For too long the dragonriders held all the power while their people starved and lived in fear. Nine years later, a new generation of dragonriders is emerging, children selected and trained on merit, not bloodlines. Their dragons are finally mature enough for them to compete for Firstrider, a position of power that can give Lee back a small part of what his family lost. However, not only is Lee competing against Annie, but rumors are circulating that some of the royal family have survived and have dragons of their own. Everyone will have to make a choice: Restore the old regime, support the First Protector and the new caste system he created, or look for a new way, no matter what the cost. From the beginning, this book pulls readers in with political intrigue and action. What keeps them invested, however, are the complex relationships between many cast members. Choices are complex, and the consequences for all could be deadly. The world is well fleshed out and believable. Annie and Lee are light skinned; secondary characters are diverse, and race is a nonissue in this world.
Full of drama, emotional turmoil, and high stakes. (author’s note) (Fantasy.14-17)Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-525-51821-1
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: July 23, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2019
Several yards short of a touchdown.
A transgender boy starting over at a new school falls hard for a popular cheerleader with a reputation to protect in this debut.
On the first day of senior year, transgender boy Pony locks eyes with cisgender cheerleader Georgia. They both have pasts they want to leave behind. No one at Hillcrest High knows that Pony is transgender, and he intends to keep it that way. Georgia’s last boyfriend shook her trust in boys, and now she’s determined to forget him. As mutual attraction draws them together, Pony and Georgia must decide what they are willing to risk for a relationship. Pony’s best friend, Max, who is also transgender, disapproves of Pony’s choice to live stealth; this disagreement leads to serious conflict in their relationship. Meanwhile, Georgia and Pony behave as if Pony’s trans identity was a secret he was lying to her about rather than private information for him to share of his own volition. The characters only arrive at a hopeful resolution after Pony pays high physical and emotional prices. McSmith places repeated emphasis on the born-in-the-wrong-body narrative when the characters discuss trans identities. Whiteness is situated as the norm, and all main characters are white.
Several yards short of a touchdown. (Fiction. 14-17)Pub Date: May 26, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-06-294317-0
Page Count: 368
Publisher: HarperTeen
Review Posted Online: Feb. 8, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
© 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.
