Teenage Lexicon

Honey Butter is one of those rare books that is pure magic. I don’t think any words I write can accurately capture the essence of this story, but I can certainly try to find some. Warning: (mild) spoilers ahead! The premise of the book—a somewhat overlooked child finding solace in paint chips—is endearing. Jamie is such a beautiful, well-written character. Like any seven-year-old, she is naïve, slightly aloof, and has a wondrous imagination. She makes mistakes, but she has such a good heart. The reader knows Jamie within a few pages. It is impossible to meet Jamie and not smile at least once a chapter. Laren is also a wonderful, detailed character. She remains remarkably positive, regardless of the troubles she’s endured. Jamie is entranced by her, and the sister-like relationship that emerges goes beyond heartwarming.  The setting—and the language describing it—can only be described by “ebullient ”, as Laren would say. The summertime vibes are so strong—I wanted...

Love and the Sea and Everything in Between by Brian McBride is not for the faint of heart. It deals with very difficult subjects, but it does so wonderfully. WARNING: Spoilers ahead! And mentions of suicide, depression, and assault.  Let’s start with characters, whom I loved. Adam and Liz weren’t perfect. They made mistakes, and they hurt each other because they were hurting themselves. The reader really feels as if they know Adam and Liz. I do wish we could have had a bit more exploration of Jeremiah and Oliver, though. Though the letter that Jeremiah gives to Adam towards the end does give a lot more insight into his character, we may have been able to understand his and Adam’s fallout better and sooner in the story, which may have made his confrontation with Liz a bit more emotional. (Though that scene was very emotional; it was one of my favorite scenes.) The setting was also extremely vibrant. Although I’ll admit that I’ve never been to San Francisco, it’s o...

Why Not YA is all about bringing attention to an inarguably underrated genre. Because YA (young adult) fiction is geared towards somewhat younger readers, a stigma surrounds it: can what YA has to say really be of any value?  The Astonishing Color of After by Emily X. R. Pan dares you to change your mind and will infallibly succeed.  Warning: This book deals with some heavy topics like suicide and depression, and this review may mention those topics. Second warning: SPOILERS AHEAD! Leigh has just lost her mother to suicide. This book follows her as she travels across the world to meet her maternal grandparents, whom she has never met before. While in Taiwan, she pieces together her family’s history from fragments of memories she can’t quite remember. She doesn’t know anything except that her mother has turned into a bird. This book pushes the boundaries of metaphor, and it does so wonderfully. Leigh feels in colors; Pan illustrates these colors with vivi...