The Garcias live in fear until the day both parents are picked up his Pa is taken to jail and his Ma to a detention center. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents show up unsuccessfully seeking his Pa at his New York City bodega. Mateo’s life is turned upside down the day U.S. There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.Ī Mexican American boy takes on heavy responsibilities when his family is torn apart. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than 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 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. The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.Īutumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart their mothers are still best friends. Overall, the story moves slowly and subtly, creating a rich emotional landscape and letting small changes-Layla finds a boyfriend Sydney's mom and brother have a fight-ripple out gently.Ī many-layered story told with a light touch.
This tension shows itself most unsettlingly when Sydney's parents go out of town for a weekend and leave Sydney in the care of Peyton's friend Ames, whose sinister interest in Sydney is clear to everyone who pays attention. Although Sydney's mother's character sometimes feels one-note, Sydney's frustration with her mother's willful denial and relative neglect of her is palpable and poignant. At home, Sydney's mother throws herself obsessively into "supporting" Peyton and pressures Sydney to become as involved in visiting Peyton and talking to him on the phone as she has, without respect to either Sydney's or Peyton's wishes.
Sydney is drawn into the warm world of their family and the pizza business, and crisp, unusual details bring each character and set of relationships to life. There, she meets siblings Mac and Layla, who quickly befriend her. After her ne'er-do-well older brother, Peyton, is sent to prison, demure, obedient Sydney leaves her sheltered private school for a new start.Īvoiding her family after her first day at Jackson High School, Sydney fortuitously stops for a snack at Seaside Pizza.
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