A.S. King is the award-winning author of young adult books including Reality Boy, Ask the Passengers, Everybody Sees the Ants, and The Dust of 100 Dogs. She has visited hundreds of schools to talk about empowerment, self-reliance and self-awareness. Find more at www.as-king.com.
Kirkus Reviews, starred review, September 15, 2010:
"A harrowing but ultimately redemptive tale of adolescent angst
gone awry. Vera and Charlie are lifelong buddies whose relationship
is sundered by high school and hormones; by the start of their
senior year, the once-inseparable pair is estranged. In the
aftermath of Charlie’s sudden death, Vera is set adrift by grief,
guilt and the uncomfortable realization that the people closest to
her are still, in crucial ways, strangers. As with King’s first
novel, The Dust of 100 Dogs (2009), this is chilling and
challenging stuff, but her prose here is richly detailed and wryly
observant. The story unfolds through authentic dialogue and a
nonlinear narrative that shifts fluidly among Vera’s present
perspective, flashbacks that illuminate the tragedies she’s
endured, brief and often humorous interpolations from “the dead
kid,” Vera’s father and even the hilltop pagoda that overlooks
their dead-end Pennsylvania town. The author depicts the journey to
overcome a legacy of poverty, violence, addiction and ignorance as
an arduous one, but Vera’s path glimmers with grace and hope."
(Fiction. 14 & up)
Publishers Weekly, starred review, October 11, 2010:
"Beginning with the funeral of Charlie Kahn, high school senior
Vera's neighbor and former best friend, this chilling and darkly
comedic novel offers a gradual unfolding of secrets about the
troubled teenagers, their families, and their town. Though
Charlie's death hangs heavily over Vera, she has the road ahead
mapped out: pay her way through community college with her job
delivering pizza while living "cheap" in her father's house. But
first she has to face her fractured relationship with her father, a
recovering alcoholic who worries about her drinking; the absence of
her mother, who left six years earlier; and the knowledge that she
could clear Charlie's suspected guilt in a crime. Vera is the
primary narrator, though her father, Charlie (posthumously), and
even the town's landmark pagoda contribute interludes as King (The
Dust of 100 Dogs) shows how shame and silence can have
risky--sometimes deadly--consequences. The book is deeply
suspenseful and profoundly human as Vera, haunted by memories of
Charlie and how their friendship disintegrated, struggles to find
the courage to combat destructive forces, save herself, and bring
justice to light." Ages 13–up. (Oct.)
Booklist, starred review, November 15, 2010:
"High-school senior Vera never expects her ex-best friend, Charlie,
to haunt her after he dies, begging her to clear his name of a
horrible accusation surrounding his death. But does Vera want to
help him after what he did to her? Charlie’s risky, compulsive
behavior and brand-new bad-news pals proved to be his undoing,
while Vera’s mantra was always “Please Ignore Vera Dietz,” as she
strives, with Charlie’s help, to keep a secret about her family
private. But when Charlie betrays her, it is impossible to fend off
her classmates’ cruel attacks or isolate herself any longer. Vera’s
struggle to put Charlie and his besmirched name behind her are at
the crux of this witty, thought-provoking novel, but nothing
compares to the gorgeous unfurling of Vera’s relationship with her
father. Chapters titled “A Brief Word from Ken Dietz (Vera’s Dad)”
are surprising, heartfelt, and tragic; it’s through Ken that
readers see how quickly alcohol and compromised decision-making are
destroying Vera’s carefully constructed existence. Father and
daughter wade gingerly through long-concealed emotions about Vera’s
mother’s leaving the family, which proves to be the most powerful
redemption story of the many found in King’s arresting tale.
Watching characters turn into the people they’ve long fought to
avoid becoming is painful, but seeing them rise above it, reflect,
and move on makes this title a worthy addition to any YA
collection."
The Bulletin of the Center for Childrens Books, review, November
2010:
"The death of a best friend is hard enough, but for high-school
senior Vera Dietz, her reaction to the death of Charlie Kahn is
complicated by the fact that in the last few months he’d dumped her
for the druggie pack at school, especially tough-girl Jenny.
Flashbacks and compact commentary from Charlie himself, from Vera’s
straitlaced dad, and from an omniscient local landmark interweave
with Vera’s current narration, painting the picture of Vera and
Charlie’s close friendship and its recent souring and revealing
that Vera is the guilty and troubled possessor of many secrets
about her late friend. King offers a perceptive exploration of a
particular kind of friendship, one where one friend is undergoing
agonies beyond the power of the other to help. Vera’s own
troubles—her abandonment by her mother, the strictness and
emotional evasion of her recovering-alcoholic father—get
sympathetic treatment, but it’s clear that Vera is loved and cared
for in a way that Charlie, stuck in a poisonous, abusive home,
simply wasn’t. Yet it’s Vera’s life even more than Charlie’s that’s
under scrutiny here, especially since Vera still has the
possibility of making changes, both in her dealing with Charlie’s
memory and in her ongoing relationships. The writing is emotional
yet unfussy, and Vera’s tendency to see and perceive Charlie in
every place and every thing is both effective and affecting. It’s
not uncommon for the dysfunction in one friend’s life to start
sowing seeds of doom for a friendship, and Vera’s poignant take on
her double loss will resonate with many readers."
VOYA, review, November 2010:
"It is hard to describe how deeply affecting this story is. Vera
and Charlie are both the victims of extremely bad parenting, but
that only scratches the surface of the novel. The writing is
phenomenal, the characters unforgettable. The narrative weaves
through the past and present, mostly from Vera's viewpoint but with
telling asides from other characters. There is so much in here for
young people to think about, presented authentically and without
filters: drinking and its consequences; the social hierarchy of
high school; civic responsibilities; and teens' decisions to accept
or reject what their parents pass down to them. It is a
gut-wrenching tale about family, friendship, destiny, the meaning
of words, and self-discovery. It will glow in the reader for a long
time after the reading, just like the neon red pagoda that watches
over Vera and her world."
Gr 9 Up-A. S. King's 2011 Printz Honor book (Knopf, 2010) is expertly crafted and richly performed primarily by Lynde Houck with additional chapter perspectives narrated by Mark Deakins, Ryan Gesell, and Arthur Morey. Vera Dietz, a high school senior, knows what happened to her best friend, Charlie, the night he died. But she's not ready to face the truth while she's still dealing with the scars from Charlie's betrayal. As Vera tries to move on, she is haunted by varying numbers of ghostly Charlies that she sees, hears, and feels. Charlie wants Vera to tell the truth, clear his name, and forgive him. With chapters reflecting the perspectives of Vera's father, Charlie, and the town's landmark Pagoda, listeners are afforded a more complete picture of the situation than Vera has. As the heartbreaking reality is revealed, listeners will feel Vera's emotions as her perspective begins to subtly change and she moves through the anger, the betrayal, and the guilt. The performers are realistic in their portrayals, audibly exposing each character's vulnerabilities. Listeners will feel the weight being lifted off of Vera's shoulders and her heart in this moving, poignant story that shows how deeply people can both love and hurt each other and ultimately find a level of redemption.-Stephanie A. Squicciarini, Fairport Public Library, NY (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
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