This grittily provocative debut explores the horrors of self-harm and the healing power of artistic expression.Ī Mexican American boy takes on heavy responsibilities when his family is torn apart. Like most issue books, this is not an easy read, but it's poignant and transcendent as Charlie breaks more and more before piecing herself back together. Through intense, diarylike chapters chronicling Charlie's journey, the author captures the brutal and heartbreaking way "girls who write their pain on their bodies" scar and mar themselves, either succumbing or surviving. Feeling rejected, Charlie, an artist, is drawn into a destructive new relationship with her sexy older co-worker, a "semifamous" local musician who's obviously a junkie alcoholic. But things don't go as planned in the Arizona desert, because sweet Mikey just wants to be friends. After spending time in treatment with other young women like her-who cut, burn, poke, and otherwise hurt themselves-Charlie is released and takes a bus from the Twin Cities to Tucson to be closer to Mikey, a boy she "like-likes" but who had pined for Ellis instead. Seventeen-year-old Charlie Davis, a white girl living on the margins, thinks she has little reason to live: her father drowned himself her bereft and abusive mother kicked her out her best friend, Ellis, is nearly brain dead after cutting too deeply and she's gone through unspeakable experiences living on the street. Among the best elements of this supernatural romance are the three-dimensional relationships between Jack and his parents and between him and his two best friends.Ī realistic teen drama that tackles complex subjects in an uncompromising way.Īfter surviving a suicide attempt, a fragile teen isn't sure she can endure without cutting herself. When she stands him up for prom, he is heartbroken-even more so when he learns that she has a serious genetic condition. All of that changes when Jack meets Kate, an African-American student tour guide, during his visit to her university. Jack King, who is African-American, is an only child, caught in a love triangle with his two best friends: Franny, a resilient and optimistic Latinx boy, and Franny’s Italian-American girlfriend, Jillian, who is grappling with family issues-and who is the one who got away. What can Jack say about a college freshman girl who’s dying? That she is beautiful and brilliant? That she loves writing, witty banter, and him? Or that he is destined to meet her over and over again? In this engrossing debut novel, Reynolds creates both a pair of unforgettable protagonists who are doomed to love, lose, and work to find one another again and again and a well-rounded cast of supporting characters. Romeo and Juliet meets Groundhog Day and Love Story in this wonderfully romantic story of teenage love and second chances.
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