YA book roundup
“Hey, Kiddo” by Jarrett J. Krosoczka, 320 pp., Graphix, $14.99, ages 12 and up
In a 2012 TED Talk, Jarrett Krosoczka, creator of the popular “Lunch Lady” middle-grade graphic novel series, compared growing up as the child of a drug-addicted parent to Charlie Brown kicking the football. Every time young Jarrett’s mom seemed committed to staying clean and becoming a positive presence in his life, she would disappear again. From the seeds of that talk grew this candid graphic memoir, nominated for a National Book Award.
Krosoczka’s comic-strip art incorporates personal mementos, such as childhood drawings; letters his mother sent from jail or rehab; and swatches of wallpaper from his maternal grandparents’ house in Worcester, Mass., where he was raised. His grandparents, Joe and Shirl, act as his parents. Krosoczka offers a loving portrayal of them without sanding away their rough edges; they curse, smoke, drink, fight — and do everything to help their grandson thrive. They encourage him to sign up for classes at the Worcester Art Museum. With Joe and Shirl’s unwavering support, he developed the artistic talent he inherited from his mother into a career that enables him not only to entertain children, but also to connect with them honestly about things that matter.
“Damsel” by Elana K. Arnold, 320 pp., Balzar + Bray, $17.99, ages 14 and up
The typical happy ending for fairy-tale maidens ushers in, for Ama, a nightmarish new beginning. She awakens on the back of Prince Emory’s horse with no memory of how she got there or where she came from. She doesn’t have a name, as far as she knows, until he gives her one. The prince says he rescued her from a dragon, that she is finally safe — but safe from what? Not from the small, constrained life as his queen, the vessel to his heir, that awaits her.
In this timely, riveting fantasy novel, Elana K. Arnold forges meaningful parallels between Ama’s plight and that of all women belittled, objectified and controlled by patriarchal culture. Prince Emory’s friend Pawlin gives Ama lessons on how to tame her pet, a lynx kitten she has named Sorrow, and his instructions reveal how girls, too, learn from an early age to submit: “The key to this is to strike the right balance between trust and fear. That, and timing. The best-trained beasts are those who have been broken before they have tasted their own power.” Ama’s challenge is to find and reclaim her power from those determined to convince her that it doesn’t exist. Fortunately, even the besttrained beasts are, somewhere deep inside, still wild.
“You Are the Everything” by Karen Rivers, 272 pp., Algonquin, $17.95, 14 and up
“You are on a plane.” An entire novel written in second person may seem like pumpkin spice hummus: an interesting experiment, but not something most of us are eager to consume. Yet Rivers uses the perspective to brilliant effect. Grounded in the fragile consciousness of its teen main character, Elyse Schmidt, the narrative works so well that the only way you will want to avoid reading it is if you are actually in flight.
The story, which recounts events leading up to and following a deadly plane crash, tilts and swerves. Multiple chapters open on a football field in Wyoming, where Elyse and her boyfriend, Josh Harris, are lying on a blanket drinking beer and looking at the stars. In one sense, Elyse’s greatest wish has come true: She has loved Josh in secret for a long time, and now he loves her. But the tragedy that bonded them has also brought loss, grief and gaps in Elyse’s memory that she can’t seem to bridge. You take this harrowing yet beautiful journey with her. You see the pieces fall into place. Together, you figure it out.
Christine Heppermann is the author of two books for young adults and co-author of the “Backyard Witch” series for younger readers.