Publishers Weekly
11/11/2019
In eloquent narrative verse, this debut set in a small, working-class Maine community recounts the reverberations of a gun accident that leaves 17-year-old Jonah severely brain damaged and on life support. The narrator, Jonah’s 15-year-old sister, Liv, struggles to comprehend her new reality: her teachers’ voices sound “like buzzing.../ all the words blending together/ into one big GRAH.” Jonah now lives in the family’s living room, dependent on round-the-clock nurses for survival, and letters to the editor blame Jonah’s parents’ negligent teaching for the accident. Meanwhile, Jonah’s best friend, Clay, in whose attic Jonah accidentally shot himself, is forbidden to visit because Liv’s mother, desperate for money to pay for Jonah’s care, is suing Clay’s parents. Frustrated that her mother pays “more attention/ to Jonah’s machines/ than to Jonah,” Liv remains convinced that “Jonah is in there.” Liv’s resilience grows with her gradual recognition of her own inner resources; Jonah’s indomitable spirit; Clay’s quiet, steadfast friendship; and the supportive network that embraces her family. Culley, who has worked as a pediatric hospice nurse, deftly captures the community’s nuanced responses and the heartbreak both families navigate as this devastating tragedy becomes a political battleground. Ages 13–up. (Jan.)
From the Publisher
"Culley’s compelling free-verse poems accumulate into a poignant story of a family that was already struggling and then transformed into something unrecognizable. Liv’s narration is touching, honest, and perceptive. A story of love and resilience as much as loss and grief." — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books (starred review)
"Piercingly realistic. A poignant, humanizing exploration of a sadly timely issue." — Kirkus Reviews
"An emotional journey that follows a life-altering tragedy. Culley weaves carefully chosen details into a slowly forming tapestry. A tale that is both harrowing in subject matter and elegant in execution." — ALA Booklist
"A heartbreaking story about a topic that is too prevalent in today’s society." — School Library Journal
"Eloquent narrative verse. Culley deftly captures the community’s nuanced responses and the heartbreak both families navigate as this devastating tragedy becomes a political battleground." — Publishers Weekly
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books (starred review)
"Culley’s compelling free-verse poems accumulate into a poignant story of a family that was already struggling and then transformed into something unrecognizable. Liv’s narration is touching, honest, and perceptive. A story of love and resilience as much as loss and grief."
ALA Booklist
"An emotional journey that follows a life-altering tragedy. Culley weaves carefully chosen details into a slowly forming tapestry. A tale that is both harrowing in subject matter and elegant in execution."
School Library Journal
11/01/2019
Gr 9 Up—This leisurely paced novel in verse follows two families (the Carriers and the LeBlancs) who are affected by the accidental shooting of 17-year-old Jonah Carrier. Liv, Jonah's 15-year-old sister, shares the heartbreak of watching her brother struggle through being machine- and nurse-dependent since he accidentally shot himself with his best friend Clay's father's gun, and she explains the toll this accident has taken on both families. Clay experiences heavy guilt and responsibility for Jonah's condition. Clay's mom doesn't know how to converse with and support the Carriers while she copes with Clay's behavior. Jonah's mother is in denial about her son's condition. Liv experiences her own withdrawal from school but finds purpose in taking care of her brother. While these families are dealing with the trauma of the shooting they are also preparing for Jonah's trial, which places everyone against each other, including members within their small community. Liv is immature and can be easily viewed as childish. As a teenager, Liv calls her brother's machines by silly nicknames such as "Suck-It-Up" and "Trapeze," and refers to her brother's gunshot wound as his "boo-boo" throughout the story. The romance between Liv and Clay doesn't seem to fit considering the trial, the shooting, and how everyone deals with Jonah's condition. VERDICT A heartbreaking story about a topic that is too prevalent in today's society.—Kharissa Kenner, Bank Street School for Children, New York
Kirkus Reviews
2019-10-21
After her brother is injured in a gun accident, a teen—and her town—grapples with the aftermath in Culley's debut.
Fifteen-year-old Liv's older brother, Jonah, had always been a daredevil—until he accidentally shot himself with a gun belonging to his best friend Clay's dad. Now, severely brain damaged, he requires expensive round-the-clock care. Despite Jonah's largely passive state, Liv accords him as much agency as possible, helping him to "have his say." As the trial to determine who's responsible approaches, residents of former mill town Maddigan, Maine, vehemently defend their right to own guns. But firearm debates are only the surface of this character-driven drama. Introspective and inquisitive Liv's free-verse narration vividly explores the rift between her family and Clay's; memories of her late father; and the difficulty of surviving in her economically depressed small town. Above all, her spare, blunt lines convey her love for Jonah; her exhaustion and loneliness as her friends and overworked, overwhelmed mother grow distant; and the nuances of guilt and forgiveness. Liv's struggle with the "little animal / inside" her that yearns for attention even as she acknowledges that Jonah "needs everything" is piercingly realistic. Fortunately, kind—if somewhat one-dimensional—secondary characters offer support, and Liv and Clay's gradual romance is touching. The ending offers bittersweet but satisfying closure. Most characters appear white; one of Liv's friends is Indian American.
A poignant, humanizing exploration of a sadly timely issue. (Fiction. 13-18)
