Picture Us In the Light, Kelly Roy Gilbert
Sometimes getting what you want most doesn’t solve your problems. Danny Cheng, the main character of Picture Us In the Light, loves art; he has been drawing portraits for years and is hoping his portfolio gets him early acceptance into his dream school, the Rhode Island School of Design. Early in the book, Danny gets his acceptance letter, and he and his supportive family celebrate. But he finds this acceptance (and the scholarship he’s offered) is not the illuminating sunbeam he expected. Tensions rise with other problems: Danny’s dad refuses to discuss a mysterious box his son found, and a close friend refuses to talk about her depression. Then, his dad loses his job, and the family moves to a cheaper city outside the wealthy Silicon Valley and Danny switches schools. The story develops issues of immigration, suicide, religion, socioeconomic status, diversity and LGBTQ, but these issues are intrinsic to the characters’ stories, not its defining characteristics. Any of these could appeal to teen readers. His parents’ secrets and a bit of romance add to the heartbreaking nature. Kelly Loy Gilbert has written the best YA I read the last two months. The book is beautifully written, with images and metaphors smoothly woven in, and a character driven story of emotional depth and hope.
They Both Die at the End, Adam Silvera
So, it is difficult to read a book with this title. I hoped it was a lie (it’s not). Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio live in a world slightly progressed from today: people are notified by phone in the early hours of the day they are about to die. With that knowledge, the LastFriend app can connect the soon-to-die with friends for their final hours, and that’s how Mateo and Rufus meet. After the app has introduces them to some creeps, they are glad to meet. Chapters alternate between the two boys, one of whom identifies as queer, and their connection and romance develop. New York City is magic, so much that the future tech is bland. Imminent death is a motivator to sort your relationships.
Fever Dream, Samanta Schweblin
This book is one conversation, creepy and frightening, between Amanda and David. Amanda is a mother and wife, who took her daughter to a vacation home in Argentina, then left in fear. Except, she couldn’t leave. David, the other voice, initially seems to be the villain, despite his youth, but he asks only for more detail, pointing out when ‘this is the important part.’ The mystery involves polluted water, deaths, split souls and some magic realism. Amanda is in the hospital and David has her retell her story, saying, “We’re looking for worms.” I’m not sure even after reading the book what the worms are, but this novel wormed its way into my head, and I pushed through its brief pages in hyperfocus, horrified and thrilled by this condensed book where every word counts. Read it, and you’ll also be exposed to a great translator.
Seeing Red, Lina Meruane
In a semi-autobiographical novel, Lina, who has long been warned of this possibility, 
loses her eyesight after bending over to pick her coat up at a late night party. Her eyes have filled with blood, and veins, blood, and the biological are as much part of this book as the characters. Lina manages to walk home in the gray morning light, seeing only edges of things in her peripheral vision, by leaning on friends. Her boyfriend, another Chilean immigrant in NYC, has always said he’d support her, and his support in this trial is extraordinary, especially in face of his girlfriend’s manipulation. Her loss of vision is recounted in snippets of scenes, and fragmented sentences. Touch and memory fill the hole left by her blindness. Her trip home to Chile, and her plans with her doctors for surgery provide plot lines for this brief stream-of-consciousness book. Its pain leads to moral crisis that is gripping in its intensity.
Multiple Choice, Alejandro Zambra
This an odd little book that deserves mention, even if it doesn’t fit in the school curriculum. Zambra has written a multiple choice test that questions what we know, how we know it, and how we test it. Imagine a multiple choice test of your creativity! This slim volume definitely proves the author has it. Some questions are absurd, some answers are impossible, and sometimes the answer choices made me laugh. It ends with questions about story vignettes, and while I felt odd reading it all in one sitting, I enjoyed the thought-provoking experiment.
Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine, and the Murder of A President, Candice Millard
Millard has written a breezy biographical sketch of James Garfield, and his term as our
20th President. He served for less than a year, with months spent in bed suffering from a bullet wound, so it makes sense that he didn’t accomplish much as our commander-in-chief. Millard’s structure is somewhat chronological, following three men –Garfield, his assassin, and Alexander Graham Bell — from the 1876 World’s Fair (both prominent men attended), to the attack by Guiteau, and the inept health care after the shooting. Guiteau, a ne’er-do-well angered by perceived slights, argues his attempted assassination of the President was for the good of the country, and that Garfield’s death was due to his doctors, he was sentenced to death. Ironically, he second statement was true. Millard suggest Garfield, energetic, intelligent, and politic, could have accomplished great things.
The Day She Disappeared, Christobel Kent
I read several horror books this spring. One that kept me to the last pages was The Day She Disappeared. The perspective of Natalie, a barmaid who doesn’t believe her best friend and colleague has just taken off without telling her, begins to investigate Beth’s disappearance, and finds she can not trust anyone, except Victor. Victor, one of their favorite customers, upstages Nat in charm and complexity. An old man living in a trailer park, Victor is hospitalized with a stroke and cannot remember the important thing that keeps tugging at his memory. When she visits him, she finds he’s also wrapped up in saving his daughter from her abusive husband. Victor’s charm and intelligence manages to save his life in the hospital, and his story brings him into playing a role in the final dramatic scene. It seems Nat will not solve the mystery before she’s killed, but she’s got some friends who may step in and help during the last few pages.
Joshua Tree Park photo from Spring Break trip to Palm Springs
Bookshelf Picks of a Librarian 