A vivid and important depiction of the struggles of too many teens.
A troubled African American teen gets caught up in the world of trafficking as she tries to cope with negative feelings about herself.
Despite her sister’s best efforts, 16-year-old Charlese Jones is still making trouble and getting kicked out of school. Her sister and guardian, JuJu, has had enough and prepares to send her to their grandparents in Alabama. On the bus ride, Char continues to be angry, irreverent, and difficult. She argues with the driver and drinks alcohol she has smuggled in her bag. Still, she interacts with others on the bus, learning their stories and thinking about her own life. When new passenger April and her baby, Cricket, board, they become Char’s focus—and then April disappears, leaving Cricket behind. When the man who left with April returns, he takes Char into the dark world of sexual trafficking, a place she begins to think she deserves. Flake follows her groundbreaking novel The Skin I’m In (1998) with a sequel for these times. Char, the antagonist from the first book, is presented here in all her vulnerability, eliciting empathy even as she makes mistakes. The ease with which some prey on vulnerable youth is starkly portrayed, balanced by the efforts of other caring adults to save them. The unflinching narrative is rich in dialogue and detail.
A vivid and important depiction of the struggles of too many teens. (author's note, research and resources) (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Jan. 5, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-338-57317-6
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Oct. 21, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2020
PERSPECTIVES
PERSPECTIVES
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
SEEN & HEARD
A treat for mystery readers who enjoy being kept in suspense.
Everyone believes that Salil Singh killed his girlfriend, Andrea Bell, five years ago—except Pippa Fitz-Amobi.
Pip has known and liked Sal since childhood; he’d supported her when she was being bullied in middle school. For her senior capstone project, Pip researches the disappearance of former Fairview High student Andie, last seen on April 18, 2014, by her younger sister, Becca. The original investigation concluded with most of the evidence pointing to Sal, who was found dead in the woods, apparently by suicide. Andie’s body was never recovered, and Sal was assumed by most to be guilty of abduction and murder. Unable to ignore the gaps in the case, Pip sets out to prove Sal’s innocence, beginning with interviewing his younger brother, Ravi. With his help, Pip digs deeper, unveiling unsavory facts about Andie and the real reason Sal’s friends couldn’t provide him with an alibi. But someone is watching, and Pip may be in more danger than she realizes. Pip’s sleuthing is both impressive and accessible. Online articles about the case and interview transcripts are provided throughout, and Pip’s capstone logs offer insights into her thought processes as new evidence and suspects arise. Jackson’s debut is well-executed and surprises readers with a connective web of interesting characters and motives. Pip and Andie are white, and Sal is of Indian descent.
A treat for mystery readers who enjoy being kept in suspense. (Mystery. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-9848-9636-0
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Oct. 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2019
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