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OLDER FICTION
Caletti, Deb

Plan A

416 pp. | Random/Labyrinth Road | October, 2023 | Trade ISBN 9780593485545 $18.99 | Ebook ISBN 9780593485576 $10.99
(2) YA Ivy, sixteen, is pregnant and scared. In conservative Paris, Texas, she knows she can't disclose her condition--or her desire to have an abortion, which is illegal in Texas after six weeks. The accidental reveal of her pregnancy, and the judgment and hatred that follow, only make her more resolved. Ivy and her boyfriend, Lorenzo (who isn't the father), drive to Ivy's grandmother's house in Oregon, where Ivy can get the procedure done safely. During their "abortion road trip love story," they "travel the world," with stops in Lima (Oklahoma) and Genoa (Colorado) and visits to the Wonder Tower and the Pillars of Rome. As in The Epic Story of Every Living Thing (rev. 9/22), Caletti approaches a provocative subject with humanity, nuance, and compassion; here, Ivy's story is deeply personal but also contextualized within women's stories throughout history. "We should have all the choices, every possible choice, when so much hasn't been our choice," her mom's friend, who herself had an abortion, tells her. "Agency over your own body is, like, the smallest, most basic right." While this message is the story's focus, Ivy's journey is also full of beauty: great music, a new closeness with Lorenzo, and an appreciation for the wonder of the natural world. There is much more to Ivy than the "bundle of cells" inside her--which, of course, is the point.
Reviewer: Rachel L. Kerns | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2023

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