SATA
ENTRY TYPE:
WORK TITLE: I WILL FIND YOU
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE: http://daphnebg.com/
CITY: New York
STATE:
COUNTRY: United States
NATIONALITY: American
LAST VOLUME: SATA 384
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Born 1971, in Rhinebeck, NY; married; children: two.
EDUCATION:Bard College, degree (history), 1993; New School University, M.F.A. (writing for children), 2006.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Author. PS32, New York, NY, librarian. Worked variously as a social worker and waitress. Teacher of English as a second language in China for two years; teacher of high-school history in Los Angeles, CA.
WRITINGS
Contributor of stories to American Girl magazine and reviews to Publishers Weekly.
SIDELIGHTS
In addition to her career as an elementary school librarian, Daphne Benedis-Grab is the author of books for middle-grade and young-adult readers. Her works for young-adults include Alive and Well in Prague, New York and The Girl in the Wall, while her novels for middle-grader readers include The Angel Tree, Clementine for Christmas, and I Know Your Secret. Additionally, Benedis-Grab has also contributed short stories to American Girl.
In her first novel, Alive and Well in Prague, New York, Benedis-Grab describes the experiences of an urban teen whose family relocates from upscale Manhattan to a small upstate community after her artist father is diagnosed with a serious illness. Benedis-Grab began the work while pursuing an advanced degree in writing at New York City’s New School University. Several aspects of the novel are drawn from the author’s own life, including the small-town setting and family worries over a disabling medical condition. Benedis-Grab’s own father suffered from ALS (sometimes called Lou Gehrig’s disease), and her fictional heroine deals with similar symptoms while caring for a father with Parkinson’s disease.
Matisse Osgood is the central character in Alive and Well in Prague, New York. The story revolves around her unwillingness to accept the situation in which she finds herself following her family’s move north. While attempting to navigate the alien terrain of her new rural home town, the sixteen year old is also forced to create certain fictions to dispel the rumors that are passing among her former classmates back in the city. Ultimately, the change of setting forces Matisse to come to terms with both her father’s illness and her attitudes toward the people whose friendship she once valued so highly. Reviewing Alive and Well in Prague, New York in Kirkus Reviews, a critic cited Benedis-Grab’s ability to craft an “excellent narrative voice” while also recommending the “touching emotional connection and playful rural activities” that enrich Matisse’s story. “The heroine’s strong, clear voice and heartbreaking vulnerability” will attract fans of “character-driven fiction,” predicted Booklist contributor Anne O’Malley, while in Publishers Weekly a critic recommended Alive and Well in Prague, New York as a “sympathetic portrayal [that] may comfort those affected by sickness and loss.”
The protagonists of Benedis-Grab’s 2012 novel, The Girl in the Wall, are estranged friends Sera and Ariel. Ariel invites Sera to her party, despite their rift, and Sera reluctantly accepts her invitation. Shooters storm the party, killing Ariel’s dad. Ariel flees to the tunnels under her house, while the gunmen kill off partygoers. Sera knows Ariel’s location, but she struggles with whether or not to tell the gunmen. “The action and high stakes should keep readers engaged,” predicted a Publishers Weekly contributor. Leah Krippner, a writer in School Library Journal, remarked: “If they can forgive the … action sequence at the end, readers will find this mystery satisfying.”
In The Angel Tree, a mysterious benefactor places a tree in the center of Pine River each Christmas. When residents tie notes with wishes to the tree, the wishes are granted. “Part mystery and part holiday high jinks, this will be a little gift to readers,” asserted Jeanne Fredriksen in Booklist. A Kirkus Reviews critic suggested: “The kids seem younger than they are, and their dialogue often sounds unrealistic, but their innocence might appeal to readers.” Mara Alpert, a reviewer in School Library Journal, commented: “It is a satisfying read on many levels—misunderstandings are resolved, lessons are learned, friendships evolve, and positive behavior is rewarded.”
Clementine for Christmas tells the story of the relationship between a girl named Josie and her dog, Clementine. Clementine gives Josie the confidence to perform for sick children at the hospital. Josie interacts with a fellow classmate, a volunteer named Oscar, as well as a patient named Gabby, who is also in her class. Oscar causes trouble in class and is only volunteering because he is required to do so. Gabby is a popular kid, and Josie is intimidated by her. Ultimately, Josie learns how to connect with both of them.
Three siblings get accustomed to life on an army post in Benedis-Grab’s 2017 novel, Army Brats. The kids, Rosie, Charlotte, and Tom, move with their mother to Fort Patrick. Each handles the change differently. Tom is bullied by classmates, while Charlotte tries to fit in with a group of mean girls. Rosie is determined to do without friends. The three come together to investigate a building that Tom believes is haunted and to search for their missing dogs. A writer in Kirkus Reviews suggested: “The overall story is exciting. Nonmilitary kids should enjoy seeing the challenges and fun of living on [post].” Heidi Grange, a reviewer in School Library Journal, called the book “both an entertaining and informative read.”
In I Know Your Secret, middle-schoolers at Snow Valley Secondary are looking forward to Explorer’s Day at school, but the mood of excitement changes when four seventh-graders each receive alarming messages from an unknown source. The blackmailer tells preteens Owen, Gemma, Todd, and Ally to complete certain tasks around the school, and if they do not comply, their deepest secrets will be exposed. As the students try to make sense of the tasks they are asked to complete, they also attempt to uncover how they are connected and who is trying to blackmail them. A Publishers Weekly reviewer felt that Benedis-Grab “keeps the tension high from the start” and dubbed the book a “taut whodunit.” The same reviewer also appreciated that I Know Your Secret “admirably tackles bullying.” A Kirkus Reviews writer enjoyed the book as a “fun” and “entertaining story.” In an interview with Melissa Roske in From the Mixed-Up Files, Benedis-Grab discussed her inspiration for the book: “I thought about what I’d loved when I was middle-grade age, and that was when I decided I wanted to try my hand at writing a thriller. My goal was to work on a story that was hard to put down while writing it—and that readers would find it hard to put down, too!”
Benedis-Grab once told SATA: “When I was a little girl my mom read to me every night. We went on adventures with Curious George, turned to stone with Sylvester when he made the wrong wish after finding a magical pebble, and later loved and lost Charlotte the spider and traveled the plains and Plum Creek with the Ingalls family. My mom opened up a whole world to me—lots of them actually. From our many hours reading together I learned the joys of getting lost in a book and later I realized that same magical feeling happens when you write a book. Yes, the writing is more work but you get to control things, and as a not so secret control freak (my kids can attest to this) I’ve always liked being in charge. Many authors and teachers influenced me along the way, but it was my mom and our reading together that first inspired me to become an author.
“I would love for kids to feel the same magical sense of getting lost in another world when they read my books that I’ve gotten from books my whole life. I also hope my books are both mirrors and windows: places where kids see their own feeling and experiences reflected but also gain insight to people whose lives are different. I think books can help us understand people, and the more we understand people, the more bridges we build. The world is a better place when we have a lot of bridges connecting people to one another and I’d love for my books to be some of the many creating these bridges.”
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Next in Benedis-Grab’s middle-school thriller “Secrets & Lies” series, I Know You’re Lying, has a theft mystery to solve and an anti-bullying message. At Snow Valley Secondary school, the backpack of PTA president’s daughter, Sasha, has been stolen, and four seventh graders who were seen entering school early without permission are the prime suspects. They are Vietnamese American artist Jack, dancer Maddie, joker Henry, and school reporter Nora. Are all given detention until one of them confesses. Taking place in one day, the story explores their lives and motives, with Jack recounting the racism directed at him during the Covid pandemic, and Henry admitting to financial difficulty after his family’s restaurant had to close. Meanwhile, bully Sasha has a secret against all four of them, each linked to a typical adolescent problem, and threatens blackmail if they don’t admit who stole the backpack. The four work together to solve the mystery and develop a camaraderie over their shared issues.
Calling the story a socially conscious whodunit, a Kirkus Reviews contributor noted: “The author links these diverging storylines in just the right places to drive the twists and turns.” In Publishers Weekly, a reviewer commented that the characters’ experiences “add compassionate depth to a tightly coiled thriller” that reveals that things are not what they seem.
I Will Find You is another book in the series, about a missing child. At a seventh-grade camping trip in the Catskill Mountains, Olivia, Leo, and Gracie learn that their classmate, and school bully, Nicky, has gone missing. Although the police are investigating, the three campers do their own sleuthing, and discover that someone was planning to get revenge against Nicky for his bullying, and that plan got out of control. Even though they don’t like Nicky and no one will miss him, the trio have to stop the revenge plot and find Nicky in time.
A Kirkus Reviews writer thought the resolution was too simple and ignored real-world complexities, nevertheless, “Thought-provoking questions about forgiveness, making amends, and the efficacy of consequences and retribution are peppered throughout,” and each character has a distinct perspective and personality. The Kirkus Reviews writer added that the book addresses complex social issues like poverty and bullying.
In an interview with Elise Dumpleton at Nerd Daily, Benedis-Grab expressed her joy writing for children, saying: “We all deserve moments that touch our hearts and let us know we are loved, and so I make sure to give them to my characters.” She added that she tries to write believable characters, especially the villain: “they are a complex person with reasons for their actions that start to make sense when you get to know them.”
Benedis-Grab explained to Debbie Ridpath Ohi on her website that she was inspired to write I Will Find You from her own experiences at camp and the potential for a mystery to take place there. When she writes about identity, race, and issues concerning adolescents, she said: “I think every book I write touches on my core belief that everyone has a story and to understand other humans we need to listen to those stories.”
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BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Booklist, May 15, 2008, Anne O’Malley, review of Alive and Well in Prague, New York, p. 38; September 15, 2014, Jeanne Fredriksen, review of The Angel Tree, p. 56; January 1, 2017, Suzanne Harold, review of Army Brats, p. 90.
Kirkus Reviews, May 1, 2008, review of Alive and Well in Prague, New York; July 15, 2014, review of The Angel Tree; January 1, 2017, review of Army Brats; October 15, 2021, review of I Know Your Secret; September 15, 2022, review of I Know You’re Lying; October 15, 2023, review of I Will Find You.
Kliatt, May 1, 2008, Claire Rosser, review of Alive and Well in Prague, New York, p. 10.
Publishers Weekly, May 26, 2008, review of Alive and Well in Prague, New York, p. 67; November 5, 2012, review of The Girl in the Wall, p. 70; October 18, 2021, review of I Know Your Secret, p. 55.
School Library Journal, June 1, 2008, Debra Banna, review of Alive and Well in Prague, New York, p. 142; April, 2013, Leah Krippner, review of The Girl in the Wall, p. 156; October, 2014, Mara Alpert, review of The Angel Tree, p. 70; February, 2017, Heidi Grange, review of Army Brats, p. 83.
Teacher Librarian, October, 2014, Betty Winslow, “Secrets and Secret Identities,” review of The Angel Tree, p. 46; April, 2016, Betty Winslow, “Let’s Celebrate!,” review of Clementine for Christmas, p. 68.
Voice of Youth Advocates, August 1, 2008, Kathleen Beck, review of Alive and Well in Prague, New York, p. 242.
ONLINE
Book Q&As with Deborah Kalb, https://deborahkalbbooks.blogspot.com/ (December 6, 2021), Deborah Kalb, author interview.
Daphne Benedis-Grab website, http://www.daphnebg.com (March 14, 2021).
Debbie Ridpath Ohi, https://debbieohi.com/ (October 16, 2023), Debbie Ridpath Ohi, “Interview with Daphne Benedis-Grab, Author of MG Thriller, I Will Find You.”
From the Mixed-Up Files, https://fromthemixedupfiles.com/ (December 6, 2021), Melissa Roske, author interview.
Nerd Daily, https://thenerddaily.com/ (November 6, 2022), Elise Dumpleton, “The Author and Librarian.”
Publishers Weekly, https://www.publishersweekly.com/ (September 2022), review of I Know You’re Lying.
Wandering Bookaholics, http://read-a-holicz.blogspot.com/ (December 29, 2012), author interview.
Bio
Daphne Benedis-Grab is the award winning author of the Secrets and Lies Novels, companion middle grade books that include I Know Your Secret, I Know You’re Lying and I Will Find You, as well as the young adult book The Girl in the Wall. Her middle grade book The Angel Tree was made into a Hallmark Original movie. She earned her MFA from The New School and is the librarian at Alameda Jr/Sr High, in Lakewood, Colorado, a job she loves. She lives in Boulder, Colorado with her husband, two teens and cat Tango.
Extra Details:
*I grew up in a small town but lived in New York City for 25 years before moving to Colorado.
*I love the beach and have a tattoo of seagulls on my left arm.
*My favorite kind of cookie is oatmeal chocolate chip and berry pie is my favorite dessert.
*When I was eight I read Beverly Cleary’s RAMONA THE PEST twenty times because I loved it so much.
*Lois Duncan was my favorite author when I was a teenager except for KILLING MR GRIFFIN because it is just too sad. THEY NEVER CAME HOME is my favorite.
*I still love to read pictures books. MILO IMAGINES THE WORLD by Matt de la Pena is my favorite right now.
*The first movie I saw was the original STAR WARS and it’s still one of my movie top ten.
* Number one on my movie top ten is THE USUAL SUSPECTS. BARBIE is number 2.
*I also love the Marvel movies. BLACK PANTHER, CAPTAIN AMERICA WINTER SOLDIER and SPIDERMAN are my favorites.
*I don’t play sports but I like watching football, especially the Colorado University Buffaloes.
*Other things I like: swimming, hiking, coffee, chocolate and sleeping late.
*Things I dislike: big spiders, getting stuck out in the rain and cheese.
*Any other details you are curious about? Send me an email and I’ll fill you in!
Daphne Benedis-Grab is the author of the middle grade novels The Angel Tree, Clementine for Christmas and Army Brats, as well as the young adult book The Girl in the Wall. She is also the part time school librarian at PS32 in Brooklyn where she gets to hang out with kids and books all day (she is a very lucky person!). She lives in New York City with her husband, two teens, and a cat who has been known to sit on her computer if he feels she has been typing too long. Visit her at daphnebg.com.
The Author and Librarian
Elise Dumpleton·Writers Corner·November 6, 2022·4 min read
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Guest post written by author Daphne Benedis-Grab
Daphne Benedis-Grab is the award winning author of the middle grade novels I Know Your Secret, Clementine for Christmas and The Angel Tree, as well as the young adult book The Girl in the Wall. She earned her MFA from The New School and is the part time school librarian at PS32 in Brooklyn. She lives in New York City with her husband, two teens, and cat Tango. Please visit her at daphnebg.com. Her latest novel, I Know You’re Lying, is out now.
I began my first school librarian job in the thick of Covid.
Schools in New York City had recently re-opened with strict new guidelines, I was in my final semester of (suddenly online) graduate school for my library degree—meaning I needed a job— and a public prek-5th grade school in Brooklyn was seeking a librarian. On a chilly morning in October I donned a cloth mask that coordinated with my outfit, boarded a half-empty A train at 125th Street, and rode 40 minutes to what would quickly become a life-altering destiny.
Being a librarian has challenged, delighted and truly overjoyed me in all the ways, but one of the most satisfying is how it has helped me grow me as a writer. Here are three things I have learned that changed the way I wrote my latest middle grade thriller, I KNOW YOU’RE LYING:
One: We All Have Reasons for Our Actions
I have a kindergartener who will get up in the middle of storytime and fling a bin of books across the room. I have a fifth grade student who will only read books about the beach. I have a preK kiddo who needs to be hugging me throughout our class or she runs wildly around the library. These things can appear disruptive, quirky and above all, irrational, but they never are. My kindergartener is unable to express himself in language so he needs to find physical ways to show us what he is feeling and what he needs. My fifth grader lives for summers when she goes to her grandmother’s beach house in Maine and wants her pleasure reading to take her back to the ocean. And my prek sweetie needs hugs because we all need hugs and she gets them by any means necessary J This is why the villain in my book has motive, things that happened to them, things they need deeply, things they believe can only be gotten by actions that end up hurting others. My villain, like my students, is not irrational or bad. Instead, they are a complex person with reasons for their actions that start to make sense when you get to know them.
Two: Every Minute Counts
I am a part-time librarian which means that not every grade gets class time in the library. So in the morning, at lunch, and sometimes at random moments in the day, a student will fly into the library begging to get a book. Obviously the answer is yes because getting books into the hands of kids is what I’m there for. But what impresses me every time is the intensity, the focus, even the ferocity with which this book search takes place. And that is because the clock is ticking. In thrillers you need that same intensity, that focus, that ferocity to find the culprit, and so IKNOW YOU’RE LYING is set in a single school day, with the clock ticking down to unthinkable consequences—kind of like searching for the perfect book before time runs out J.
See also
Author Penny Haw On Challenges For Women In The Victorian Era
Three: Every Day There Are Glorious Moments So Full of Beauty They Make Your Heart Explode
A kindergartener hugged me at the end of class and told me he loves me. My colleague was recently told he is a pre-k student’s best friend and was invited over for a playdate. I asked an author friend to sign a book for a fifth grader; when I gave it to the student she ran her fingers over the author’s signature, looked up at me with tears in her eyes, and asked, “He really signed it for me?” Every day there are things that frustrate me and things I struggle with, but at least once a day a kid shows love in a way so pure and precious my heart explodes. We all deserve moments that touch our hearts and let us know we are loved, and so I make sure to give them to my characters. A reader recently shared that LYING gave her “all the feels and made me cry in the good way” at the end. That is thanks to my students.
Bonus: We Should Have Fun
Kids are fun and it turns out I am more fun around them. I make up ridiculous songs that get them laughing, I lead us in silly dances, and just yesterday I insisted we all “swim” around the library like fish in preparation for our fish-themed read-aloud. Life can be serious, stressful, and scary—and it should also be fun. I try to make sure my characters have fun as the clock counts down and they solve their mysteries. And if you happen to read I KNOW YOU’RE LYING (and I hope you do!) may it be almost as fun as a swim around the library!
Interview with Daphne Benedis-Grab, Author of MG Thriller, I WILL FIND YOU (Scholastic Press)
OCTOBER 16, 2023
Daphne Benedis-Grab is the author of the middle grade novels I KNOW YOUR SECRET, I KNOW YOU’RE LYING, and CLEMENTINE FOR CHRISTMAS as well as the young adult book THE GIRL IN THE WALL. Her middle grade book THE ANGEL TREE was made into a Hallmark Original movie. She earned her MFA from The New School and is the librarian at Alameda Jr/Sr High. She lives in Boulder, Colorado with her husband, two teens and cat Tango. You can find out more about Daphne at her website, Instagram, YouTube, or the site formerly known as Twitter.
I WILL FIND YOU
Written by Daphne Benedis-Grab
Publisher: Scholastic
Publication date: December 5, 2023
Audience: Ages 8-12 / Grades 3-7
More info on I WILL FIND YOU here
Synopsis:
Nicky has disappeared!
Oliva, Leo, and Gracie–three seventh graders who have very little in common except for how much they dislike Nicky, the school bully–were the last ones to see him. They are sure that there are clues the police are overlooking. And they each have their own secret reason for needing to find him as soon as possible.
As they investigate, they discover that things are more complicated than they had seemed. Nicky’s victims made a plan to get revenge on him–a plan that’s gone terribly wrong. Can they find out where Nicky is before it’s too late?
Mystery, thrilling twists, and spot-on friendship dynamics combine to make this a page-turning read and a thoughtful look at bullying, revenge, and the true meaning of punishment and forgiveness.
Preorder I WILL FIND YOU from wherever you buy books. Signed copies will be available at Daphne’s local independent bookstore, Second Star to the Right.
Q: How was I WILL FIND YOU created?
I write thrillers because I’ve always loved reading them, so my starting point is always a (hopefully) juicy what-if. It has to be something I know I’d like to read, like the kind of what-ifs created by my favorite thriller writers Lois Duncan and Karen McManus (I always read books for writing inspiration!). I Will Find You takes place in the same school as my earlier middle grade thrillers, I KNOW YOUR SECRET and I KNOW YOU’RE LYING and that dictated some of the parameters of FIND YOU.
All the books takes place in the course of a single day, so that needed to stay the same, but both of the previous books took place in school, so I wanted to vary it up in FIND YOU. I started thinking about field trips and then remembered the camping trip I took with my freshman class in high school and all the potential for mystery that was there. The what-if I then came up with was, “what if four seventh graders are assigned to the same cabin but in the morning only three of them remain?” (Quick spoiler- this is not a murder mystery.) And that set up the question that drives the rest of the story: where exactly did that fourth kid go and why? To find out you have to read the book 🙂
Q. What do you hope young readers will take away from your book?
Every book I write reflects the issues I’m contemplating in my life at the time I’m writing. Certain things come up regularly in my stories: identity, race, neurodiversity, how people handle emotions and challenges in their lives, the way we choose to treat each other and the impact that has. I think every book I write touches on my core belief that everyone has a story and to understand other humans we need to listen to those stories.I want readers to fall into the stories I write, eager to turn pages to find out what happens and then shocked and satisfied by the ending. And I hope that in that there is also new empathy and wonder for the people in their world.
Q. What advice do you have for young creators?
My most practical advice is this: write every day. Write when you feel like it, write when you don’t. Even on days when you think every word is awful, it’s something to come back to and edit the following day. And chances are it’s not as bad as you thought! My most essential advice: your story is unique and special and has never been told before. The world will be better if you share it!
Q. What are you excited about now?
I just got a job as a junior/senior high librarian! Four years ago, when my kids were getting ready to apply to college, I went back to school and got my SMLS, aka my librarian degree. I spent three glorious years working as the librarian at an elementary school in Brooklyn- Debbie, you know how awesome that community is because you did a fantastic visit with my students there! Now I’m getting to work with older students still doing what I adore: helping students find books they love!
Benedis-Grab, Daphne I WILL FIND YOU Scholastic (Children's None) $8.99 12, 5 ISBN: 9781338884746
A fun annual school tradition takes a terrifying turn when a classmate goes missing.
Gracie can't wait to spend two nights with her best friend at the seventh grade campout in the Catskill Mountains. Upon her arrival, however, her expectations are dampened by the discovery that one cabin is off-limits for repairs, leaving her in the only coed group, which includes teacher Ms. Becker and classmates Leo, Olivia, and (much to everyone's chagrin) Nicky, who's a notorious bully. The first night is uneventful, but the campers awaken to discover that Nicky is missing. The police arrive to investigate, but, each harboring their own secret reasons, the three remaining tween cabin mates launch a high-stakes investigation of their own. In the process, they uncover a scheme none of them could have expected. Chapters alternate between the perspectives of Gracie, Olivia, and Leo as they make discoveries that lead them closer to an answer. Each central character has a distinct and interesting perspective and personality, and although these traits are not mined deeply, they allow for helpful insights into the mystery. Thought-provoking questions about forgiveness, making amends, and the efficacy of consequences and retribution are peppered throughout. Important, complex social issues like poverty and child neglect are addressed, but the resolution feels too simple and ignores some real-world complexities. Main characters are coded white; names signal diversity in the supporting cast.
A thrilling, if overly didactic, mystery. (Mystery. 8-12)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2023 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 9th Edition APA 7th Edition Chicago 17th Edition Harvard
"Benedis-Grab, Daphne: I WILL FIND YOU." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Oct. 2023, p. NA. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A768633704/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=7bae6dea. Accessed 17 Feb. 2024.
Benedis-Grab, Daphne I KNOW YOU'RE LYING Scholastic (Children's None) $7.99 9, 6 ISBN: 978-1-338-79398-7
One of Us Is Lying for the middle-grade set.
Four seventh graders--eager school paper reporter Nora, passionate artist Jack, talented dance team member Maddie, and perennial joker Henry--are placed in in-school suspension à la The Breakfast Club after the backpack belonging to Sasha, the PTA president's daughter, is stolen. Captured on video entering school early without permission, the four suspects must remain there until one of them confesses. Through alternating narratives from each student's perspective, readers learn they each have a hidden and plausible motive--and Sasha knows their secrets, too. In a setup similar to Benedis-Grab's I Know Your Secret (2021), the four seemingly different middle schoolers must work together to recover the stolen backpack and thwart Sasha's blackmail attempts. There is an empathetic element that adds to this light thriller: Each student's secret also offers a brief look into a common adolescent dilemma. Set after the Covid-19 lockdowns, the novel also addresses repercussions from the pandemic. Jack, who has a Vietnamese American father and White mother, experiences anti-Asian racism, and Henry's father's restaurant closed due to the pandemic, leaving the household financially insecure. The author links these diverging storylines in just the right places to drive the twists and turns, bolstering an underlying anti-bullying theme. The main characters, other than Jack, present White; names signal ethnic diversity in the supporting cast.
A socially conscious whodunit. (Thriller. 9-12)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2022 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 9th Edition APA 7th Edition Chicago 17th Edition Harvard
"Benedis-Grab, Daphne: I KNOW YOU'RE LYING." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Sept. 2022, p. NA. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A717107454/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=a70ef32b. Accessed 17 Feb. 2024.
I Know You’re Lying
Daphne Benedis-Grab. Scholastic, $7.99 paper (240p) ISBN 978-1-338-79398-7
PW contributor Benedis-Grab returns to upstate New York’s Snow Valley Secondary, the setting of I Know Your Secret, with another character-driven academic mystery, this time centering four unwitting seventh graders accused of theft based on circumstantial evidence. When a backpack is stolen from the locker of popular but unmerciful Sasha Saturday, class clown Henry Davis, dancer Maddie Fox, reporter Nora Montgomery, and artist Jack Tran—under threat of expulsion and possible litigation—are given in-school suspension until one of them confesses. The students initially accuse one another, but their acrimony turns to solidarity, and launches a name-clearing investigation among them, when Sasha threatens to blackmail the whole quartet. Unfolding entirely in one day, the concisely plotted novel’s propulsive pacing keeps one eye on the clock, pausing for tender, camaraderie-deepening scenes that reveal Sasha’s leverage over each of the four. The characters’ experiences, including Vietnamese American Jack’s encounters with Covid-19-related racism and Henry’s guilt over his family’s financial precarity, add compassionate depth to a tightly coiled thriller positing that crimes, like people, have more to them than it may initially seem. Most characters read as white. Ages 8–12. Agent: Sara Crowe, Pippin Properties. (Sept.)