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LaMarche, Una
4 Reviews
(3)
YA
In immediate first-person narratives each addressing a different "you," five seniors at a prestigious NYC arts academy relate the events of their final semester. Love, jealousy, secrets, and drugs intensify the brutal pressure to succeed, propelling the friends toward disaster. The characters' expressions of regret foreshadow tragedy, but LaMarche masterfully keeps readers guessing until the shocking and wrenching conclusion.
Reviewer: Katie Bircher
(3)
YA
With their drug-addicted mother back in jail, seventeen-year-old Michelle tends to her early-teen-surly, diabetic sister Cass and sweet but disruptive little brother Denny. Michelle is ambushed at work by the stepbrother of her half-sister, and the unlikely quintet seeks the girls' deadbeat--and dying--biological father. Issues of race and socioeconomic status are overcome for the sake of family in this memorable road-trip novel.
Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz
(2)
YA
Devorah and Jaxon meet in an elevator and come away with that love-at-first-sight feeling. It's complicated; Devorah is a Hasidic Jew, Jaxon is black. Devorah, whether agonizing over her love life or sharing informative details about Hasidic daily life and religious philosophy, is believable and engaging. Her struggle between tradition and modernity, filial duty and personal fulfillment, is complex and realistic.
Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
July, 2014
(4)
YA
Four teens meet at summer camp as kids and through flashbacks reveal the ups and downs of their five-year friendship. Somewhere along the line, secrets threaten their bond; each hopes a camp reunion can recapture it. Those who've felt the unique connections created at summer camp will identify, but none of the girls are drawn finely enough to render them engaging.
Reviewer: Rebecca Kirshenbaum
4 reviews
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