Who's Messed Up?

The Field Guide to the North American Teenager by Ben Philippe

New York, NY : Balzer + Bray, an imprint of an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2018.

372 p. ; 22 cm.      

I wasn't sure how much I'd enjoy this book when I first started it.  It has that YA "thing" of a main character who is so witty and facile with banter and snark that he makes Holden Caulfield look like Greg Brady after a nap. But the book got some favorable reviews and even won a prize from YALSA - the prestigious Morris Award (2020) for debut YA novel. 

Funny thing about this book, though, is that it has a way of growing on you.  The whole set-up of a Haitian-Canadian teen moving to Austin, TX for his junior year of high school has a lot of potential.  As Canada (the nickname Austonians gift Norris with) adjusts to the hellish heat and big strangeness of Texas, USA he starts to pick up some friends, a job, and even a smart, artsy girlfriend.  The relationships really make this novel work.  And some striking twists and turns in friendship and romance help Norris to see that maybe his condescension says something about his own jerkishness, not just everyone else's.  I also like how issues of diversity, multiculturalism, and racism are woven naturally into the story and handles with a light, but substantive touch. 

I couldn't help but like this book, it's clever, funny, and a bit overdone at times, but ultimately it has a lot of heart.  I'd definitely recommend it to a student.

Home at Heart

Feels Like Home by e.E. Charlton-Trujillo
New York : Delacorte Press, c2007.
213 p. ; 22 cm.

I wanted to read this novel before the author, e.E. Charlton-Trujillo came to our school for the second time this October. I was glad I picked it.  It's a bit of a throw-back novel, in a sweet way.  There's no aliens, zombies, dystopian overlords, fights to the death, or raunchy sexual situations. What there is, is an homage to S.E. Hinton's 1967 classic, The Outsiders and an homage to the small-town outsider - an outsider with heart and brains and the determination to go on to bigger things.

It's a good old-fashioned drama - with grief for lost parents and family and grief for a past that is no more - all told though the viewpoint of a teen girl who is trying to come to terms with the past and with a brother who has let her down.

It's not a fast novel or a flashy novel, but it's a good, solid read.

Additionally, the author is a wonderful guest to have at a high school. She is passionate about writing, about connecting with young people, and about living a life of art and connection.  She's great with students and I'll be encouraging kids to check out her books and be looking forward to reading her latest novel, the award-winning, Fat Angie.

All Sweet & No Bite

The Tequila Worm by Viola Canales
New York : Wendy Lamb, c2005.
1st trade pbk. ed. 
199 p. ; 21 cm.

I mentioned to a teacher that I was reading Canales' The Tequila Worm, and she asked me what I thought of it.  "Well...," I hesitated, "...the writing is good, but there's just no edge to it; it reminds me of a Norman Rockwell painting - wonderfully crafted, interesting, but overly sentimental..." And as I finished the novel, I  kept thinking how I would have enjoyed it so much more if there were even just a a touch of cynicism, a hint of real irreverence, or a bit of critical detachment.  Instead the entire novel is an homage to a squeaky clean idealization of barrio life in McAllen, TX - in the 70s(?).

My criticism aside, the writing is quick and observant, and the values portrayed in the story of quite admirable - family loyalty, the bonds of friendship, importance of cultural identity and rituals, respect for difference, and the value of education.

My favorite part of the novel was the final third of the narrative, when the main character, Sofia - leaves home to attend an elite college-prep boarding school on a full scholarship. At the school, Sofia has to deal with homesickness and class/race discrimination from some of her classmates, and the conflicts she feels between her ambitions to move up in the world versus her sadness at leaving behind the small community of her barrio.

The novel would be an excellent middle school pick for classroom use, but I'm not sure how well it would go over with senior high school students.