An insightful story showing that adolescence can be an enlightening but painful ride.
In Pierlot’s YA novel, a teen spends her school year racked with worries over her home life, her body image, and the new guy in class.
Harley Hastings hopes this will be “The Year of Harley” at her school in Australia. But things aren’t looking good from the first day of Year 10; her best friend, Talia, who’s been gone all summer, seems intent on cozying up to the popular mean girl Eden. Likewise, Harley notices her close male friend, Griff, growing inexplicably distant. There’s a glimmer of hope, though, when an American student transfers to her high school. Handsome Colt Carter catches many an eye, but does the fact that he’s extra nice to Harley mean he likes her? As the year progresses, Harley fixates on a potential romance with Carter, as well as her anxiety over body issues. Convinced she needs to lose weight, Harley contemplates and tries several approaches, some of which aren’t healthy. Meanwhile, her father is constantly away on business, which may be the reason for her parents’ incessant arguments. Pierlot masterfully delivers a teenager’s narrative voice. Harley is sympathetic (she lost her beloved grandmother just before the school year begins) and endures fellow students, including Eden, mocking her. Her first-person account is so emotionally rich that her hang-ups and mistakes (even when she hurts someone) are understandable. (Carter doesn’t openly flirt with Harley, but he’s just warm enough to make readers understand why she’s hooked.) The character is subtly nuanced—Harley excels at reading situations, such as Talia’s attempts to get a boy’s attention (“I’ve seen this show before and have no interest in re-runs”), but she isn’t quite as good at reading people. Watching her spiral and pick herself back up, only to fall again, is a heart-wrenching journey that’s worth taking.
An insightful story showing that adolescence can be an enlightening but painful ride.Pub Date: July 27, 2025
ISBN: 9780645099836
Page Count: 350
Publisher: Big Ideas Press
Review Posted Online: Aug. 12, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A contemporary hero’s journey, brilliantly told.
The 17-year-old son of a troubled rock star is determined to find his own way in life and love.
On the verge of adulthood, Blade Morrison wants to leave his father’s bad-boy reputation for drug-and-alcohol–induced antics and his sister’s edgy lifestyle behind. The death of his mother 10 years ago left them all without an anchor. Named for the black superhero, Blade shares his family’s connection to music but resents the paparazzi that prevent him from having an open relationship with the girl that he loves. However, there is one secret even Blade is unaware of, and when his sister reveals the truth of his heritage during a bitter fight, Blade is stunned. When he finally gains some measure of equilibrium, he decides to investigate, embarking on a search that will lead him to a small, remote village in Ghana. Along the way, he meets people with a sense of purpose, especially Joy, a young Ghanaian who helps him despite her suspicions of Americans. This rich novel in verse is full of the music that forms its core. In addition to Alexander and co-author Hess’ skilled use of language, references to classic rock songs abound. Secondary characters add texture to the story: does his girlfriend have real feelings for Blade? Is there more to his father than his inability to stay clean and sober? At the center is Blade, fully realized and achingly real in his pain and confusion.
A contemporary hero’s journey, brilliantly told. (Verse fiction. 14-adult)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-310-76183-9
Page Count: 464
Publisher: Blink
Review Posted Online: April 30, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2017
PERSPECTIVES
A timely and unabashedly feminist twist on a classic fairy tale.
Sixteen-year-old Bisou Martel’s life takes a profound turn after encountering an aggressive wolf.
Following an embarrassing incident between Bisou and her boyfriend, James, after the homecoming dance, a humiliated Bisou runs into the Pacific Northwest woods. There, she kills a giant wolf who viciously attacks her, upending the quiet life she’s lived with her Mémé, a poet, since her mother’s violent death. The next day it’s revealed that her classmate Tucker— who drunkenly came on to her at the dance—was found dead in the woods with wounds identical to the ones Bisou inflicted on the wolf. When she rescues Keisha, an outspoken journalist for the school paper, from a similar wolf attack, Bisou gains an ally, and her Mémé reveals her bloody and brave legacy, which is inextricably tied to the moon and her menstrual cycle. Bisou needs her new powers in the coming days, as more wolves lie in wait. Arnold (Damsel, 2018, etc.) uses an intriguing blend of magic realism, lyrical prose, and imagery that evokes intimate physical and emotional aspects of young womanhood. Bisou’s loving relationship with gentle, kind James contrasts with the frank exploration of male entitlement and the disturbing incel phenomenon. Bisou and Mémé seem to be white, Keisha is cued as black, James has light-brown skin and black eyes, and there is diversity in the supporting cast.
A timely and unabashedly feminist twist on a classic fairy tale. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 25, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-06-274235-3
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Nov. 18, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2019
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