Every Variable of Us

by Charles A. Bush

Overview

After Philly teenager Alexis Duncan is injured in a gang shooting, her dreams of a college scholarship and pro basketball career vanish in an instant. To avoid becoming another Black teen trapped in her poverty-stricken neighborhood, she shifts her focus to the school's STEM team, a group of self-professed nerds seeking their own college scholarships.

Academics have never been her thing, but Alexis is freshly motivated by Aamani Chakrabarti, the new Indian student who becomes her friend (and crush?). Alexis begins to see herself as so much more than an athlete. But just as her future starts to reform, Alexis’s own doubts and old loyalties pull her back into harm’s way.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781635830750
Publisher:	North Star Editions
Publication date:	03/01/2022
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	376
File size:	4 MB
Age Range:	14 - 18 Years

About the Author

Charles A. Bush was raised in Philadelphia, and attended Cabrini University before honing his craft at the University of Oxford. In addition to writing young adult novels, he played professional basketball overseas, spends far too much time obsessing over all things Marvel, has long run out of places to store his mountains of books, and dreams of someday debating literature with Rory Gilmore. Every Variable of Us is his first novel. You can follow him on Instagram (@Charles_A_Bush). [Author photo by Joe McFetridge]

Editorial Reviews

"The author doesn’t shy away from showing truths about how poverty affects people, especially in Black communities . . . Raw and authentic." —Kirkus Reviews

“Bush’s social realism combined with insightful representation will appeal strongly to teens ­eager to see themselves and their struggles represented accurately.”

From the Publisher

02/01/2022

Gr 9 Up—Philly teen Alexis is the star of her school's girls' basketball team, and dreams of getting a sports scholarship that will take her out of her underserved, poverty-stricken community of Hargrove. That all changes when, caught in the middle of a gang conflict, Lex is shot and loses her ability to play ball for good. Friendship with Aamani, a recent transplant from New Jersey, opens up a new world of possibility, both academically and possibly romantically. But just when Lex is beginning to think there might be a future outside of Hargrove, tragedy strikes again and threatens to pull her back under. Excessive similes and an abundance of hit-or-miss pop culture references weigh down otherwise lively prose and a joyful character voice of great immediacy and empathy. The characters are predominantly Black, including the main character, with Hindu Indian American and Asian American characters also featuring prominently. Trigger warnings for racism, homophobia, and instances of and references to child neglect and/or abuse. VERDICT Language, violence, and sexual content will likely attract bans and challenges, but it's a worthwhile fight, as Bush's social realism combined with insightful representation will appeal strongly to teens eager to see themselves and their struggles represented accurately, particularly those teens who may have been steered toward athletics despite academic potential.—Chelsea Lytal

School Library Journal

2021-12-24
A 17-year-old girl is forced to grow in unexpected ways.

Alexis Duncan dreams of making it out of her rough West Philadelphia neighborhood. With her father out of the picture, a mother with drug abuse issues, and friends who seem to be heading in a direction she's not comfortable with, Lex depends on her basketball skills to escape. Those dreams are shattered after an incident at a party leaves her seriously injured. Lost in despair, Lex blows up at Aamani Chakrabarti, the new girl whose family bought a local convenience store—but Aamani convinces Lex to join the school’s STEM team. An average student, Lex has to put in tremendous effort to keep up, and the pair grow closer the more time they spend studying together, making Lex question her sexuality. Just as her new life is looking up, intrusions from her old life threaten to undo the great strides she’s made, forcing her to make momentous decisions. The author admirably weaves the two girls’ intersecting identities into the story, endearing them to readers and offering insights into the complex forces that shaped them. Lex is Black, bisexual, poor, and disabled; lesbian Aamani is Indian American from a Hindu family. Minor characters are also well developed. The author doesn’t shy away from showing truths about how poverty affects people, especially in Black communities. Excessive pop-culture references unfortunately take readers out of the moment.

Raw and authentic. (author’s note) (Fiction. 14-18)

Kirkus Reviews