Publish Date |
April 30, 2024 |
Category |
Young Adult Fiction / Social Themes / Suicide Young Adult Fiction / Social Themes / Depression |
Price |
$23.99 |
ISBN: 9781665903950
Format: Hardback
Pages: 304
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Published: April 30, 2024
* "Readers will enjoy the book’s satisfying plot and thematic endings. Hand to fans of Erika L. Sánchez’s I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter (2017) and Sarah Everett’s How to Live without You (2022), whether they enjoyed the mystery, the mental-health focus, or the true-to-life voices." "This wrenching novel is absolutely compelling, with a vulnerable, sympathetic narrator whose journey toward healing is tenderly conveyed.""Mather writes about depression and anxiety without judgment, and her depiction of Karmen’s survivor’s guilt...is handled with considerable nuance and empathy. A moving look at a sister’s flawed, heartfelt attempts to heal in the wake of emotional devastation.""A unique and necessary view of teenage mourning."Karmen’s return to school less than two months after her brother Julian died by suicide goes poorly—she feels under a microscope, far too raw for the usual high school carelessness and taunts, and also pressured by her father who thinks behaving normally will restore normalcy. When she is suspended after a fight, the time off gives her breathing room to try to find people who knew her brother, certain that if she just finds the right person and asks the right questions, then she’ll finally get answers. She finds, however, nothing but unraveled threads, more questions, and the realization that she must learn to live without ever actually learning why her brother took his life. There is a world waiting for her—a new girl who could be a friend, a long-time crush who is interested back, parents who both want to help her and need her help, and plans for what to do after high school—Karmen can make peace with embracing life even though her brother could not. Set in the Bahamas, this wrenching novel is absolutely compelling, with a vulnerable, sympathetic narrator whose journey toward healing is tenderly conveyed. The reader’s helplessness of watching Karmen stumble toward danger mirrors her own powerlessness in realizing that her brother had been hurting for years, and she couldn’t have helped him. It is a significant relief that she is able to find her core again, and her slow, not always linear, steps through grief are both realistic and reassuring. AS