Instead of one towering image like M. C. Higgins atop his gleaming pole, Arilla Sun Down is made up of a series of arresting scenes that are almost surreal in their visual intensity. And commanding them, as resplendent a show-off as ever M. C. dreamed of being, is twelve-year-old Arilla's big brother Jack Sun Run Adams, whom she sees as "up high," "golden," and a clear and ever-present threat to her place in the sun. There is the early childhood adventure, remembered with fragmented present-tense immediacy, when Sun appears at the top of a hill at midnight to lasso Arilla (Moon) and their Dad, who are about to go over a cliff on a sled. There is, later, the Fourth-of-July picnic when Sun on his rearing horse lassos three dudes who have spoken disrespectfully of his interracial—black and "Amerind"—family. There is the forbidden midnight skate at the roller rink, and the frantic scramble by Arilla, Sun and Sun's girlfriend to escape discovery. And then there is that bizarre accident when a sudden ice storm sends migrating ducks falling from the sky, one onto Sun's head. His slipping horse falls on top of him, and Arilla proves her mettle on the difficult ride for help. Arilla, fighting for her own position in a family that seems to belong nowhere, is both saddened and released by her brother's fall; she learns that their parents see him as a posturing dreamer with identity problems of his own. There are reinforcing threads—Arilla's early rapport with an old Indian; her father's periodic need to return to his native village and his identity as Great Wolf. The resulting mesh gives the common theme of adolescent self-discovery a dazzling, uncommon impact.
Pub Date: Sept. 13, 1976
ISBN: 0590053809
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1976
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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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