A droll, engrossing exploration of privileged teens striving to do better.
An elite international school community reacts to one student’s climate protest.
Marisa Cuevas, cued as Latina, is known mostly for being a good student until she, with several followers, chains herself to the doors of Central International School on its legendary high school lock-in night—turning a playful tradition into literal imprisonment. Nobody’s leaving, she says, until each of her 30 environmental demands is met. She’s prepared for condemnation and even fury from her classmates, but she doesn’t expect the unlikely group that forms to protect her. Alsaid (contributor: It's a Whole Spiel, 2019, etc.) takes readers deep into the students’ inner lives, winking all the while to offset the protest’s tragic urgency: Peejay Singh, half Indian/half Scottish, all charm and popularity, desperate to live up to his older brother’s example. Celeste Rollins, the black American new kid who befriends Japanese/British Kenji Pierce through improv but doesn’t yet know his terrible secret. Jordi Marcos (ethnicity and nationality unspecified), the outlier who isn’t sure himself why he’s against the protest—but still is, violently. Finally, Malaysian decathlete Amira Wahid, who finds her mother’s strictures falling away under Marisa’s fierce gaze. Packed with quips and insights, the wry narrative captures the intense yearnings of young adulthood; the ridiculous spectrum of clueless, controlling, and (sometimes) cooperative adults; and the overwhelming inertia of institutions. Several main characters are queer.
A droll, engrossing exploration of privileged teens striving to do better. (Fiction. 13-18)Pub Date: April 7, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-335-14676-2
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Inkyard Press
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2020
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
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in.
Black is back with another dark tale of Faerie, this one set in Faerie and launching a new trilogy.
Jude—broken, rebuilt, fueled by anger and a sense of powerlessness—has never recovered from watching her adoptive Faerie father murder her parents. Human Jude (whose brown hair curls and whose skin color is never described) both hates and loves Madoc, whose murderous nature is true to his Faerie self and who in his way loves her. Brought up among the Gentry, Jude has never felt at ease, but after a decade, Faerie has become her home despite the constant peril. Black’s latest looks at nature and nurture and spins a tale of court intrigue, bloodshed, and a truly messed-up relationship that might be the saving of Jude and the titular prince, who, like Jude, has been shaped by the cruelties of others. Fierce and observant Jude is utterly unaware of the currents that swirl around her. She fights, plots, even murders enemies, but she must also navigate her relationship with her complex family (human, Faerie, and mixed). This is a heady blend of Faerie lore, high fantasy, and high school drama, dripping with description that brings the dangerous but tempting world of Faerie to life.
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in. (Fantasy. 14-adult)Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-316-31027-7
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Sept. 25, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2017
© Copyright 2025 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.
