November Ever After
Laura Torres
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From Publishers Weekly
After 16-year-old Amy’s mother is killed in a car crash, she turns to her best friend Sara for support. But as Sara spends more and more time with their classmate, Anita, Amy begins to feel lost. When she learns from Sara’s mother that Sara is in love with Anita, she feels betrayed. First novelist Torres convincingly and gradually brings out the complexities of Amy’s feelings. Amy’s narrative describes her fear that Sara will spend all her time with Anita and drop their friendship; she grapples with her own feelings about Sara’s sexual orientation and worries that classmates will think she’s gay, too, and tenses up whenever Sara touches her. Amy’s bittersweet memories of her mother and Sara are well-crafted, but the placement of these vignettes often feels forced. More jarring is the unconvincing conclusion. Amy comes to the sudden realization that her friend is still the same person (‘My heart felt right, being with Sara the way we used to be’). Several other subplots tie up the loose ends a bit too tidily, but the promising prose and credible characterizations make this writer one to watch. Ages 12-up. (Nov.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
Grade 8-11-When 16-year-old Amy’s mother is killed in an accident, the teen’s pastor father retreats into his own grieving, and she stops attending church. She finds solace in her friendship with Sara, until she is shocked to discover that Sara is romantically involved with a girl. Amy, who has depended on Sara to the exclusion of other friends, is hurt and confused. She reconnects with Peter, a young man from church, and by the novel’s end has returned to the fold. While Torres conveys well the teen’s grief and her friendship with Sara, she perpetuates the disapproval toward homosexuality found in the biblical stance of ‘love the sinner, hate the sin.’ The pastor hopes that Sara’s being gay is just a phase. He encourages Amy to continue her friendship with her, yet condemns her lifestyle. Many readers will find this book offensive and it will certainly be damaging to the self-esteem of gay teens.
Connie Tyrrell Burns, Mahoney Middle School, South Portland, ME
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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Details
| ISBN | 9780823414642 |
| Genre | YA Fiction (Young Adult) |
| Publication Date | Dec-99 |
| Publisher | Holiday House |
| Format | Hardcover |
| No. of Pages | 208 |
| Language | English |
| Rating | NotRated |
| BookID | 9016 |
