Project and content management for Contemporary Authors volumes
WORK TITLE: The Last True Love Story
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE: 7/2/1977
WEBSITE: http://www.brendankiely.com/
CITY: New York
STATE: NY
COUNTRY:
NATIONALITY: American
http://tweedsmag.org/interview-brendan-kiely/ * http://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Brendan-Kiely/408865698
NOTE EXISTING ENTRY TO ADAPT
RESEARCHER NOTES:
LC control no.: no2014010702
LCCN Permalink: https://lccn.loc.gov/no2014010702
HEADING: Kiely, Brendan, 1977-
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100 1_ |a Kiely, Brendan, |d 1977-
370 __ |e Greenwich Village (New York, N.Y.) |f Massachusetts |2 naf
372 __ |a Writing |a education
374 __ |a Author |a teacher
375 __ |a male
377 __ |a eng
670 __ |a Kiely, Brendan. The gospel of winter, c2014 : |b t.p. (Brendan Kiely)
670 __ |a Amazon website, Jan. 23, 2014 |b (Brendan Kiely received an MFA in creative writing from the City College of New York. His writing has appeared in Fiction, Guernica, Big Bridge, and the journal Mikrokosmos Literary Journal, among other publications. Originally from the Boston area, he now teaches at an independent high school and lives with his wife in Greenwich Village.)
670 __ |a Email from author, Jan. 27, 2014 |b (Please add my birth date: 07/02/1977 as additional information to distinguish me from the other author. I am writing books for the YA and adult markets.)
PERSONAL
Born July 2, 1977; married.
EDUCATION:City College of New York, M.F.A.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Teaches at an independent high school.
AWARDS:Received a Coretta Scott King Author Honor Award, the Walter Dean Myers Award, the Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award, and was selected as one of the authors in the American Library Association’s Top Ten Best Fiction for Young Adults.
WRITINGS
Contributor to periodicals and journals, including Fiction, Guernica, Big Bridge, and the Mikrokosmos Literary Journal, among other publications.
SIDELIGHTS
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Booklist, December 15, 2013, Ann Kelley, review of The Gospel of Winter, p. 41; November 15, 2014, Ilene Cooper, “Top 10 religion & spirituality books for youth,” p. 41; September 15, 2015, Michael Cart, review of All American Boys, p. 62; August 1, 2016, Cindy Welch, review of The Last True Love Story, p. 63.
Horn Book Magazine, November-December, 2015, Anastasia M. Collins, review of All American Boys, p. 89; September-October, 2016, Jonathan Hunt, review of The Last True Love Story, p. 109.
Kirkus Reviews, November 15, 2013, review of The Gospel of Winter.
Publishers Weekly October 21, 2013, review of The Gospel of Winter, p. 53; December 2, 2015, review of All American Boys, p. 88.
Voice of Youth Advocates, October, 2016. Erin Wyatt, review of The Last True Love Story, p. 62.
ONLINE
Brendan Kiely Home Page, http://www.brendankiely.com/ (April 18, 2017).
New York Times Online, https://www.nytimes.com/ (December 18, 2015), review of All American Boys.*
Brendan Kiely is The New York Times bestselling author of All American Boys (with Jason Reynolds), The Last True Love Story, and The Gospel of Winter. His work has been published in ten languages, received a Coretta Scott King Author Honor Award, the Walter Dean Myers Award, the Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award, and was selected as one of the American Library Association’s Top Ten Best Fiction for Young Adults. Originally from the Boston area, he now lives with his wife in Greenwich Village.
Brendan Kiely is the New York Times bestselling author of All American Boys (with Jason Reynolds), The Last True Love Story, and The Gospel of Winter. His work has been published in ten languages, received a Coretta Scott King Author Honor Award, the Walter Dean Myers Award, the Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award, was twice awarded Best Fiction for Young Adults (2015, 2017) by the American Library Association, and was a Kirkus Reviews Best Books of 2014. Originally from the Boston area, he now lives with his wife in New York City. Find out more at BrendanKiely.com.
All American Boys
An interview with Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely
BY RENÉE WATSON Add to Cart PURCHASE A PDF OF THIS ARTICLE
Jason Reynolds (left) and Brendan Kiely
As an author and educator, I ask myself: How do I create space for young people to practice empathy, to think about worlds other than their own? How can young readers experience literature as a bridge, a map, a window, a mirror? How can young adult novels be used in the classroom to ignite conversations about social issues? Now, more than ever, these questions are weighing on me, given the divide in our nation over the 2016 presidential election.
At a recent social justice workshop for educators, one teacher asked me, “How do I get my students to care?” Another asked, “How do I begin the conversation?” An administrator wanted resources for dealing with her own assumptions and stereotypes.
One book I recommend over and over is All American Boys. Authors Brendan Kiely and Jason Reynolds were on a book tour with fellow Simon & Schuster authors when a Florida jury found George Zimmerman not guilty in the 2012 death of Trayvon Martin. The two authors realized they had more in common than writing for teens—they were both frustrated, angry, confused, and saddened about the ongoing killing of unarmed Black men and women. In August 2014, when police officer Darren Wilson killed Michael Brown, another Black, unarmed teen, Brendan wanted to do more than talk about it. He wanted to write about it. He asked Jason to collaborate with him. Jason is Black, Brendan is white; they wanted the book to reflect the difficult conversations necessary to overcome the chasms created by racism.
Together, they wrote All American Boys, a young adult novel told in alternate chapters by high school classmates Rashad, who is Black, and Quinn, who is white. Rashad is wrongfully accused of shoplifting and is assaulted by a police officer—he is beaten so badly he is hospitalized. One eye is swollen shut and he has a broken nose and broken ribs. Quinn not only witnesses the assault, he knows the police officer personally. When a video of the attack goes viral, their classmates take sides and Rashad and Quinn are forced to think and talk about race in ways they hadn’t before.
I read the book in one night.
After reading All American Boys, I wanted to get it into the hands of the young people I know and every educator, too. I believe this book can be a vehicle to help young people and educators openly discuss racism, white privilege, and stereotypes. It’s more than a book about police brutality. It’s a book about two teen boys finding out who they are, what they believe, and how sometimes that conflicts with the lessons they’ve learned from their parents and their communities. It’s about taking risks and moving past being a silent bystander or a passive ally to being an active agent of change.
Talking about why he writes, Junot Díaz says: “If you want to make a human being into a monster, deny them, at the cultural level, any reflection of themselves. And growing up, I felt like a monster in some ways. I didn’t see myself reflected at all. I was like, ‘Yo, is something wrong with me? at the whole society seems to think that people like me don’t exist?’”
I am thankful for writers like Kiely and Reynolds, who are writing stories that are not only mirrors for individual readers, but for society as a whole. Our society could become a monstrous place without a reflection of itself. I am honored to share this interview.
Renée Watson: What do you say to teachers who are hesitant to use All American Boys out of concern that police brutality is too controversial for the classroom or who think the novel is anti-police?
Jason Reynolds: I say:
The novel is not anti-police. It’s just not. But since we’re on the topic of anti-police, I wish people were more pro-kid. Just saying.
Running from reality has never done anyone any good. This is the world these young people are living in. This is their world to shape, their world to change.
Either you, the teacher, are going to be on the side of the world shapers, or on the side of apathetic destruction. Whoa. That sounds heavy. And you know what . . . it is.
My experience has shown me that all you have to do is start the conversation, then step back and facilitate. You’ll be surprised at how ready so many young people are to talk about this. Create a safe space, one that might even make you uncomfortable.
Brendan Kiely: Jason and I have traveled the country and spoken to thousands of students in very diverse educational environments, from wealthy, predominantly white private schools to underserved public schools in predominantly Black and Brown neighborhoods, and all types of schools in between. In every school we visit, we ask students if they are aware of the cultural conversation surrounding police brutality, and nearly 100 percent of the students raise their hands. As a teacher, I can’t pretend this isn’t on their minds. It is. And more importantly, most of these students want to know more about the context, why it is happening, and how they can better understand it all. We wrote All American Boys to provide students, teachers, librarians, and all communities with a tool to help grapple with these tough conversations—engaging in the hard realities that a classic text like To Kill a Mockingbird addresses, but within a contemporary and more relatable context. The book isn’t anti-police at all—it is a story of how to better see the deeper humanity (in all its beauty and ugliness) in everyone involved in moments like these.
RW: Police brutality cases are often talked about in terms of right/wrong, villain/victim. The characters in your book are layered, and there are no simple boxes they fit into. How did you balance authentic cultural identity while avoiding stereotypes? Why was this important to you?
JR: For me, it was hard. So, so hard. Because there was nothing I wanted more than to use this book to honor the victims of police brutality with complete abandon. To further distill the conversation to a Black and white, anger-filled narrative, because quite frankly, that’s how I feel emotionally most of the time. Angry. Frustrated. But my emotions, while true to me, most times exist in a vacuum, potentially keeping me from further exploring fact. Does that mean racism and brutality are figments of my emotional imagination? Of course not. It’s real. It’s all real. But it gets more complicated and messy when the layers get pulled back. So, I told myself, “If I’m going to be honest about the emotional backdraft, I have to also be honest about everything else.”
BK: The reality is clear and unequivocal: Too many unarmed young people of color have been brutalized or killed by police officers. Many of the individuals who perpetrate this violence, however, may not consciously recognize the injustice they perpetuate. Life, as in All American Boys, is messy, and often people who think they have the best intentions act with devastating unconscious bias. If Officer Galluzzo considered himself a white nationalist or consciously brutalized Rashad because Rashad is Black, the story wouldn’t address our country’s deeper problems of systemic racism, which exist in law enforcement, healthcare, education, and many other institutions. Galluzzo’s unconscious bias mirrors the unconscious bias that fuels the systemic racism in our country.
RW: In All American Boys, Quinn begins to question and unpack his white privilege. He comes to many revelations throughout the story. One moment that stands out to me is when he is talking about his decision to attend the protest rally. He says: “Because racism was alive and real. . . . It was everywhere and all mixed up in everything, and the only people who said it wasn’t, and the only people who said, ‘Don’t talk about it’ were white. Well, stop lying. That’s what I wanted to tell those people. Stop lying. Stop denying. That’s why I was marching. Nothing was going to change unless we did something about it. We! White people!”
Brendan, why did you include this scene? What is the “something” that white people can do?
BK: Too often when I was growing up, conversations about race and racism were lessons about how hard people of color have it now and have always had it in our country. That is true, and we must continue to talk about and learn more about this reality. But it is only half the story—if some people are being systematically disenfranchised and disproportionally brutalized, other people are being systematically empowered and disproportionally protected.
This less-often discussed side of the story is the story of white privilege. Quinn grapples with it because he wants to better understand the whole story. As he learns more, he realizes that by ignoring the problems of racism in his community he is perpetuating those problems. That it is part of his privilege. He’s not malicious, he’s a sweet teenager who wants the best for everyone, but he comes to realize that unless he stands up against the racism, especially as a white person, he is harming the very people close to him—his friends and teammates and classmates who are people of color.
White people can listen first, hear the truth of experience from people of color; they can speak to other white people about what they hear and ask other white people to listen and learn more; and then they can join the chorus of people who are already doing work to combat injustice in our society and who already have experience in this struggle. This is Quinn’s journey, the story he has to share, particularly with other white people.
RW: What strategies do you recommend for white educators who want to talk about racism in the classroom?
BK: I worked in a high school for 10 years before becoming a full-time writer. I am forever grateful to colleagues and friends who introduced me to workshops and professional development opportunities that helped me think more critically about systemic racism, my own unconscious bias, and strategies for being a more inclusive and better teacher to both white students and students of color—especially as a white man. Organizations like the Anti-Racist Alliance, the CARLE Institute, Border Crossers, and the White Privilege Conference were all instrumental in helping me learn more and network with other teachers who were interested in learning how to talk about race and racism in the classroom. I also spent a lot of time listening to students and faculty of color and not arguing another point or side—just listening. It always amazed me how much more my students would learn from me after I spent time listening to them and their life experiences and needs. And finally, I always like to add that I made and continue to make many mistakes. I wish I didn’t, but I do, and I try hard to learn from my mistakes. We tell our students to try to tackle things they find hard, to try and fail, try again, fail again, and fail better. I think we have to do the same, especially when we are talking about race and racism. There’s too much at stake to be afraid of failure. We must all try, and when we fail, fail better the next time.
RW: Jason, in your School Library Journal’s SummerTeen keynote speech, you said: “When it comes to the pain and grief of young people, adults tend to be the most dismissive. . . . We need to help them grieve or cope. . . . It is our jobs as adults to usher young people into their own power.” How can educators “usher young people into their power?” Can literature play a role?
JR: The first thing adults have to do is listen. Listen, listen, listen. Don’t assume that a young person’s pain isn’t as big, as heavy, as the pain of an adult. If anything, it’s greater, because there’s a good chance that it’s a new pain—an uncharted territory that adults have trampled time and time again. But if we ask a few questions, simple questions like “What’s the matter?” or “How do you feel?” and then allow young people the space to speak freely, that, in and of itself, is powerful. The ability to be unfixed, not OK, the ability to be wholly human in the presence of an “all-knowing” adult creates an underestimated and grossly underrated agency in kids. What literature does is serve as an avatar—text as a human companion, a warm hug, a familiar face with a relatable experience in those moments when adults seem hard to reach.
RW: Art is a big part of the book. From the visceral “Rashad Is Absent Again” graffiti on the school steps to the private art in Rashad’s sketchbook, there’s a sense that art is a way to process injustice, perhaps to stand up against it. Do you see your writing as activism? What artists (music, visual, literary, etc.) do you recommend for teachers who want to explore art as activism?
JR: I’m not sure I view it as activism. I’m a bit reticent to call it that only because of all the “active” activists, who have dedicated their lives (and sometimes bodies) to the fight for justice. That doesn’t mean that I haven’t dedicated my life to the same fight, but when I think about my art, I think of it as . . . art. Art within the Black tradition, a tradition devoid of the luxury of being flowery and masturbatory. But I think we have to be careful about throwing around “activist.” I consider myself aware and intentional.
Art I recommend for teachers who want to explore more of this kind of work: James Baldwin (all of it), TaNehisi Coates’ Between the World and Me, Toni Morrison, August Wilson, Sonia Sanchez, Nikki Giovanni; the art of Kara Walker, the photographs of Lorna Simpson; the music of William Grant Still, Bob Dylan, and Tupac; the dance of Alvin Ailey and Bill T. Jones; and so much more. Frankly, anything made by a person of color is politically bent by default. To me, our lives, our existence in any space in this country, are implicitly political. Just being is a statement. ◼
Reynolds, Jason, and Brendan Kiely. 2015. All American Boys. Simon & Schuster.
Kiely, Brendan. The Last True Love Story
Erin Wyatt
Voice of Youth Advocates.
39.4 (Oct. 2016): p62.
COPYRIGHT 2016 E L Kurdyla Publishing LLC
http://www.voya.com
Full Text:
5Q * 4P * J * S (a)
Kiely, Brendan. The Last True Love Story. Margaret K. McElderry/Simon & Schuster, 2016. 288p. $17.99. 978-1-4814-2988-7.
Hendrix is trying to hold things together. His mom is absent, his grandpa is slowly losing himself to Alzheimer's, and his dead dad is a big, blank
unknown. When he encounters his crush, Corrina, and she desperately wants to run away, they strike up a deal for a road trip. For Corrina, it is
about escape and a fresh start, but for Hendrix and his grandpa it is a chance to reconnect with home and memories before they disappear forever.
The group encounters interesting characters while the clock ticks away on their ability to accomplish their mission before they are caught. The
road trip and its importance plays out throughout the story as the journey aids to the discovery of self and filling in of missing pieces through the
parallel journeys the main characters are on, in addition to the actual trip.
The writing is poetic, lovely, and profound. References to music and poetry abound. The book revolves around Hendrix leaving Corrina, an
adoptee from Guatemala who feels she never quite fits--without resolution. While the path Corrina will take for her future is left blank, the author
uses her as a kind of foil for what Hendrix is able to discover about his family and self. Satisfying and full of longing, the book features deep
feelings, full hearts, and heartbreak. It speaks to the importance of forging connections and the power of story to capture memories and meaning.-
-Erin Wyatt.
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
Wyatt, Erin. "Kiely, Brendan. The Last True Love Story." Voice of Youth Advocates, Oct. 2016, p. 62. General OneFile,
go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA467831099&it=r&asid=bda0f8f239e5913a4ab47f0cedc07221. Accessed 16 Apr.
2017.
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The Last True Love Story
Jonathan Hunt
The Horn Book Magazine.
92.5 (September-October 2016): p109.
COPYRIGHT 2016 The Horn Book, Inc.. A wholly owned subsidiary of Media Sources, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
http://www.hbook.com/magazine/default.asp
Full Text:
The Last True Love Story
by Brendan Kiely
High School McElderry 276 pp.
9/16 978-1-4814-2988-7 $17.99 (g)
e-book ed. 978-1-4814-2990-0 $10.99
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
Hendrix runs into his longtime secret crush, Corrina, on a street corner in L.A. where she is playing her guitar. Little does he realize this will lead
to a spontaneous plan to bust his grandfather--who has Alzheimer's disease--out of his assisted living facility, borrow Hendrix's mother's car, and
embark on a cross-country road trip to Ithaca, New York, where many of his grandfather's happiest memories were formed. As the three wend
their way through the Southwest en route to their destination, a lot of backstory comes to the fore. We learn that Gpa, a Vietnam veteran, still
misses his deceased wife terribly, while Corrina, adopted from Guatemala, struggles to fit in with her family, relate to her ethnic heritage, and deal
with the racism she experiences daily. Hendrix is finally able to open up to Corrina about his feelings for her, but the road trip is cut short when he
learns a family secret about his dead father. In this novel about two love stories (the second emerges as Gpa reminisces about Gma), Kiely
eschews the hard-hitting topics of his previous novels-- police brutality (with Jason Reynolds, All American Boys, rev. 11/15), sexual abuse in the
clergy (The Gospel of Winter)--for some of the classic tropes of YA literature, something more along the lines of John Green's Paper Towns (rev.
9/08).
(g) indicates that the book was read in galley or page proof. The publisher's price is the suggested retail price and does not indicate a possible
discount to libraries. Grade levels are only suggestions; the individual child is the real criterion.
Hunt, Jonathan
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
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Hunt, Jonathan. "The Last True Love Story." The Horn Book Magazine, Sept.-Oct. 2016, p. 109+. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA469641308&it=r&asid=db9f41756c3dc5a92be502543114a219. Accessed 16 Apr.
2017.
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The Last True Love Story
Cindy Welch
Booklist.
112.22 (Aug. 1, 2016): p63.
COPYRIGHT 2016 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist_publications/booklist/booklist.cfm
Full Text:
The Last True Love Story. By Brendan Kiely. Sept. 2016.288p. Simon & Schuster/Margaret K. McElderry, $17.99 (9781481429887). Gr. 9-12.
As lonely 17-year-old Teddy loses the man who raised him--his widowed grandfather, Gpa--by inches to Alzheimer's, he vows to make Gpa's
final wish come true: to travel from L.A. to Ithaca, New York, to the church where Gpa and Gma got married. Stealing his mother's car for the
journey, he also offers a seat to talented high-school classmate Corrina, who is trying desperately to make something happen with her musical
career. It doesn't hurt that she is the music in Teddy's heart. Whether the three make it to Ithaca or not, this bittersweet, sometimes humorous
coming-of-age journey hits all the right notes, with its emotional language, vivid landscapes, and quirky characters. Kiely {All American Boys,
2015, with Jason Reynolds) skillfully constructs the cross-country trip to mirror Teddy and Corrina's voyage of discovery, and offsets this
eagerness for the future with Gpa's ongoing struggles to keep his past. A good fit for new adults, graduates of Joan Bauer's Rules of the Road
(1998), or those who enjoyed John Green's Looking for Alaska (2005).--Cindy Welch
Welch, Cindy
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
Welch, Cindy. "The Last True Love Story." Booklist, 1 Aug. 2016, p. 63+. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA460761809&it=r&asid=a34e2fa00f57dc1a363af70dc510124e. Accessed 16 Apr.
2017.
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Kiely, Brendan: THE GOSPEL OF WINTER
Kirkus Reviews.
(Nov. 15, 2013):
COPYRIGHT 2013 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Full Text:
Kiely, Brendan THE GOSPEL OF WINTER McElderry (Children's Fiction) $17.99 1, 21 ISBN: 978-1-4424-8489-4
In a lyrical and hard-hitting exploration of betrayal and healing, the son of a Connecticut socialite comes to terms with his abuse at the hands of a
beloved priest. From the moment readers see Aidan escape his mother's Christmas Eve party to snort Adderall in his absent father's opulent
office, it is clear that the teen is unhappy. Some of the reasons emerge when Aidan witnesses Father Greg, a priest he greatly admires, in an
intimate--and, refreshingly, not graphically described--moment with a younger boy. The first thing Aidan feels in reaction to the sight is hurt that
Aidan himself is not the only boy to have received Father Greg's attention. Only over time, and through the cracks of Aidan's denial and attempts
to ignore the truth, do readers begin to see other reactions: anger, disgust, the need to re-enact Father Greg's coercions with his peers. The story is
set in late 2001 and early 2002, and the news stories of the time--the 9/11 attacks, the capture of John Walker Lindh, and eventually,
devastatingly, the Catholic Church abuse scandals--are woven in easily and seamlessly. Each of Aidan's relationships is carefully and subtly
drawn, revealed slowly through Aidan's elegant, pained and often circumspect narration. Often bleak, eventually hopeful and beautifully told.
(Historical fiction. 14 & up)
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
"Kiely, Brendan: THE GOSPEL OF WINTER." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Nov. 2013. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA348856301&it=r&asid=ff2105806edd82c54f2ad05136d76dc5. Accessed 16 Apr.
2017.
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Top 10 religion & spirituality books for youth
Ilene Cooper
Booklist.
111.6 (Nov. 15, 2014): p41.
COPYRIGHT 2014 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist_publications/booklist/booklist.cfm
Full Text:
This year's crop of standouts covers a wide range of books that deal with both the lighter and darker sides of religion and spirituality. They were
reviewed in Booklist between November 15, 2013, and November 1, 2014.
Deep in the Sahara. By Kelly Cunnane. Illus. by Hoda Hadadi. 2013. Random/Schwartz & Wade, $1799 (9780375870347). K-Gr. 3.
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
Lalla, a girl living in Mauritania, wishes to wear a malafa--an airy, colorful cloth worn over clothes and covering the head--like the woman do,
but first she must come to realize its true importance.
God Got a Dog. By Cynthia Rylant. Illus. by Marla Frazee. 2013. Simon & Schuster/Beach Lane, $1799 (9781442465183). Gr. 6-9.
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
As this book so intriguingly suggests, God comes in many shapes, sizes, and colors. But more than what the deity looks like, this slim volume of
15 poems focuses on what God does.
God Loves Hair. By Vivek Shraya. Illus. by Juliana Neufeld. 2014. Arsenal Pulp, paper, $18.95 (9781551525433). Gr. 9-12.
A kaleidoscopic collection of 21 short stories about a boy, the son of Hindu immigrant parents, growing up gender queer in Canada.
Gospel of Winter. By Brendan Kiely. 2014. Simon & Schuster/Margaret K. McElderry, $1799 (9781442484894). Gr. 9-12.
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Aidan's feelings of rage and sorrow are vividly on display in this debut offering that addresses abuse in the Catholic Church.
Jesus. By Anselm Grun. Illus. By Giuliano Ferri. 2014. Eerdmans, $16 (9780802854384). Gr. 2-4.
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The author, a German Benedictine monk, offers a simply written account of the life of Jesus, highlighted by radiant illustrations.
This Side of Salvation. By Jeri Smith-Ready. 2014. Simon & Schuster/ Simon Pulse, $17.99 (9781442439481). Gr. 9-12.
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A brother and sister, mourning the loss of their brother, are further unmoored when their parents become disciples of a charismatic preacher, who
awaits the Rapture. A smart, well-rounded story.
The True Tale of the Monster Billy Dean. By David Almond. 2014. Candlewick, $17.99 (9780763663094). Gr. 9-12.
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Billy Dean's father, a priest, is hoping to raise a saint. This powerful book traces the boy's life, heavily influenced by his parents--one who is of
darkness, the other of light.
What the Heart Knows: Chants, Charms, and Blessings. By Joyce Sidman. Illus. by Pamela Zagarenski. 2013. Houghton, $16.99
(9780544106161). Gr. 7-12.
Sidman's introduction notes that chanting, blessing, lamenting, and cursing are as old as human history. Her poetic offerings will touch readers
whose feelings and fears are the same as our ancestors.
The Whispering Town. By Jennifer Elvgren, Illus. by Fabio Santomauro 2014. Lerner/Kar-Ben, paper, $7.95 (9781467711951). Gr. 2-4.
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
Based on a true incident, this tells the story of a how a Danish town cleverly saved the Jewish families passing through.
With a Mighty Hand: The Story in the Torah. By Amy Ehrlich. Illus. by Daniel Nevins. 2014. Candlewick, $35 (9780763643959). Gr. 5-8.
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Ehrlich does a masterful job with a difficult task: making the first five books of the Jewish bible accessible to young people.
Cooper, Ilene
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
Cooper, Ilene. "Top 10 religion & spirituality books for youth." Booklist, 15 Nov. 2014, p. 41. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA392900284&it=r&asid=19809dd71d17e676652e3b52db3dea35. Accessed 16 Apr.
2017.
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The Gospel of Winter
Ann Kelley
Booklist.
110.8 (Dec. 15, 2013): p41.
COPYRIGHT 2013 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist_publications/booklist/booklist.cfm
Full Text:
* The Gospel of Winter.
By Brendan Kiely.
Jan. 2014. 304p. Simon & Schuster/Margaret K. McEIderry, $17.99 (9781442484894). Gr. 9-12.
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
Kielys gutsy debut addresses abuse in the Catholic Church. The year is 2001, the events of 9/11 are only two months old, and 16-year-old Aidan's
family is falling apart. His father, Old Donovan, is holed up in Europe with his mistress, while his mother is mainly concerned with throwing the
perfect party in their affluent Connecticut town. Aidan finds comfort in snorting lines of Adderall, swiping drinks from his father's wet bar, and
forming a friendship with Father Greg of Most Precious Blood, the town's Catholic church. Father Greg uses words like love and faith and virtue
like they mean something, and for a long time, Aidan trusts him completely. But when he realizes that Father Greg's affections are sickening, and
damaging other boys, he is left reeling. A crew of three friends--Josie, whom Aidan is attracted to; fun-loving Sophie; and Mark, whose secrets
dovetail with Aidan's--are the only people he can count on. The scandal among the Boston archdiocese in early 2002 gets Aidan's town's
attention, and when it does, Aidan's feelings of rage and denial and fear come to a head. This is challenging, thought-provoking material,
presented in beautiful prose that explores the ways in which acts rendered in the name of love can both destroy and heal.--Ann Kelley
Kelley, Ann
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
Kelley, Ann. "The Gospel of Winter." Booklist, 15 Dec. 2013, p. 41. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA355673471&it=r&asid=4f433cda18a0cebc45b8964e00875f40. Accessed 16 Apr.
2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A355673471
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All American Boys
Anastasia M. Collins
The Horn Book Magazine.
91.6 (November-December 2015): p89.
COPYRIGHT 2015 The Horn Book, Inc.. A wholly owned subsidiary of Media Sources, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
http://www.hbook.com/magazine/default.asp
Full Text:
* All American Boys
by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely
High School Dlouhy/Atheneum 316 pp.
9/15 978-1-4814-6333-1 $17.99
e-book ed. 978-1-4814-6335-5 $9.99
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
Teens Rashad (who is African American) and Quinn (who is white) are high school classmates and not much more--neither even knows the
other's name. But when a quick stop at the corner store for a bag of chips on a Friday night suddenly escalates into a terrifying scene of police
brutality, the two boys are linked and altered by the violence--Rashad as its victim and Quinn as its witness. During the week following the
incident, and in alternating voices, the teens narrate events as Rashad deals with his injuries and the unwanted limelight as the latest black victim
in the news; and as Quinn tries to understand how a cop he considers family could be capable of such unprovoked rage, and where his loyalties
are now supposed to lie. Faced with an all-too-common issue, both narrators must navigate opposing views from their friends and families to
decide for themselves whether to get involved or walk away. Written with sharp humor and devastating honesty, this nuanced, thoughtful novel
recalls the work of Walter Dean Myers and is worthy of his legacy. Reynolds and Kiely explore issues of racism, power, and justice with a diverse
(ethnically and philosophically) cast of characters and two remarkable protagonists forced to grapple with the layered complexities of growing up
in a racially tense America.
Collins, Anastasia M.
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
Collins, Anastasia M. "All American Boys." The Horn Book Magazine, Nov.-Dec. 2015, p. 89. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA434223796&it=r&asid=0f9bf76468469860f22539d837e8d86d. Accessed 16 Apr.
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2017.
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All American Boys
Michael Cart
Booklist.
112.2 (Sept. 15, 2015): p62.
COPYRIGHT 2015 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist_publications/booklist/booklist.cfm
Full Text:
All American Boys. By Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely. Sept. 2015.320p. Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy, $17.99 (9781481463331). Gr. 9-12.
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
Two teenage boys, one black (Rashad) and one white (Quinn), are inextricably linked when Quinn witnesses Rashad being savagely beaten with
little or no provocation by a policeman who has served as Quinn's de facto big brother since his father was killed in Afghanistan--and whose
younger brother is one of Quinns best friends. Can Quinn simply walk away from this apparent atrocity and pretend he hasn't seen what he has
seen? And what of Rashad? Hospitalized with internal bleeding, all he wants is to be left alone so he can focus on his art. The challenge for both
boys becomes more intense when the case becomes a cause celebre dividing first their school and then the entire community. The basketball team
becomes a microcosm of split loyalties and angry disputes that come to a head when a protest march powerfully demonstrates the importance of
action in the face of injustice. With Reynolds writing Rashad's first-person narrative and Kiely writing Quinn's, this hard-edged, ripped-from-theheadlines
book is more than a problem novel; it's a carefully plotted, psychologically acute, character-driven work of fiction that dramatizes an
all-too-frequent occurrence. Police brutality and race relations in America are issues that demand debate and discussion, which this superb book
powerfully enables. --Michael Cart
Cart, Michael
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
Cart, Michael. "All American Boys." Booklist, 15 Sept. 2015, p. 62. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA430801170&it=r&asid=c36d3ad17eda28c386ccbb36ba961330. Accessed 16 Apr.
2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A430801170
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The Gospel of Winter
Publishers Weekly.
260.42 (Oct. 21, 2013): p53.
COPYRIGHT 2013 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
* The Gospel of Winter
Brendan Kiely. S&S/McElderry, $17.99 (304p) ISBN 978-1-4424-8489-4
Kiely's impressive debut takes a controversial topic--sexual abuse in the Catholic Church--and addresses it head-on with sensitivity and finesse.
Sixteen-year-old social outcast Aidan Donovan is from a privileged but broken family. While his philandering father has decamped to Europe and
his mother is planning her latest high-society bash in their suburban Connecticut neighborhood, Aidan is busy snorting Adderall and getting
wasted with a trio of new friends. Aidan's discontent builds to a masterfully disquieting roar as he buckles under the weight of the secret he no
longer wants to keep, but is too afraid to tell: that he was repeatedly abused by a priest he had grown to love and trust. Setting his story against
the shaky aftermath of 9/11 and the scandals that surfaced in the Boston archdiocese in early 2002, Kiely hits his mark with a Sickening portrayal
of Father Greg and those who let his behavior continue. But it's the combination of Aidan's vulnerability, denial, and silent rage that makes the
novel so distressingly vivid and real. Ages 14-up. Agent: Rob Weisbach, Rob Weisbach Creative Management. (Jan.)
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
"The Gospel of Winter." Publishers Weekly, 21 Oct. 2013, p. 53+. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA349902351&it=r&asid=2348b0391924109e6e6e85b6a0e458cb. Accessed 16 Apr.
2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A349902351
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All American Boys
Publishers Weekly.
262.49 (Dec. 2, 2015): p88.
COPYRIGHT 2015 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
All American Boys Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely.
S&S/Atheneum/Dlouhy, $17.99 ISBN 978-1-4814-6333-1
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
In this painful and all-too-timely book, two authors--one black, one white--present a story of police brutality. Reynolds (The Boy in the Black
Suit) voices Rashad, the innocent victim of a police beating; Kiely (The Gospel of Winter) writes Quinn, a horrified witness. The book moves
quickly, starting on a Friday night with the boys--classmates who don't know each other---preparing for a party, and ending with a social-mediainspired
protest march one week later. For Rashad, the week means facing the physical and mental effects of what has happened, including a
father who initially assumes that Rashad is guilty. For fatherless Quinn, the struggle comes from the fact that the cop is not only the older brother
of a close friend, but also a father figure. The scenario that Reynolds and Kiely depict has become a recurrent feature of news reports, and a book
that lets readers think it through outside of the roiling emotions of a real-life event is both welcome and necessary. Ages 12-up.
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
"All American Boys." Publishers Weekly, 2 Dec. 2015, p. 88. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA436234258&it=r&asid=ac3c6608c9629c1490fe1e234086e64d. Accessed 16 Apr.
2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A436234258
BOOK REVIEW
‘All American Boys,’ by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely
Children’s Books
By KEKLA MAGOON DEC. 18, 2015
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Jason Reynolds, left, and Brendan Kiely. Credit Tina Fineberg
“RASHAD IS ABSENT AGAIN TODAY,” cries the graffiti scrawled across the sidewalk in front of Springfield Central High School. It is both a reminder and a call to action. Rashad Butler, a 16-year-old junior R.O.T.C. member and young black man, is in the hospital after a white police officer assaulted him in a convenience store. Rashad had intended to pay for a bag of chips, but Officer Paul Galluzzo mistook him for a thief. Outraged at the injustice, Rashad’s fellow students rise up in protest.
A reminder and a call to action — “All American Boys” strives to be both for its readers. As scenarios similar to its premise play out in the real world, it is necessary and appropriate for a novel to delve into these issues; fiction allows a glimpse of the world through another perspective. And so this book’s device of employing two narrators — one black, one white, each account written by a different author — is especially apt. The result is an intriguing insider-outsider look at an instance of police brutality.
Jason Reynolds (“The Boy in the Black Suit,” “When I Was the Greatest”) writes from Rashad’s point of view. Rashad is stuck in a hospital bed, trying to make sense of what happened. He faces skepticism from his father about his innocence, grapples with his brother’s determination to protest and feels trapped by the surreal, repetitive vision of himself on the national news. Underlying his stasis is the clear sense that he’s in life- and freedom-threatening danger for unjust reasons. Reynolds writes Rashad’s voice with an immediacy that demands empathy: “My brain exploded into a million thoughts and only one thought at the same time — please don’t kill me.”
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Brendan Kiely’s Quinn witnesses Officer Galluzzo beating Rashad. Quinn’s voice takes a more distant tone. He’s an observer, not an experiencer, of the events, but he has a connection to them: Quinn’s best friend is Galluzzo’s younger brother. Kiely (“The Gospel of Winter”) raises the question: Is it necessary for a white person to witness a violent act of racial bias in order to believe it is wrong, or even that it has happened at all?
Quinn spends the book deciding where his loyalties lie — worthy considerations, indeed, but pale compared with the life-altering physical and psychological damage Rashad experiences. Thus the book artfully points out a classic conundrum of race relations: The problems white people face with regard to racism cannot be made parallel to those black people face.
“This is not about you,” a friend tells Quinn, as he agonizes over whether to admit to the world what he saw. Soon after, he realizes “there was a problem, and ... I was a part of it.” Quinn’s political awakening creates forward momentum as the authors undertake two distinct tasks: to humanize the victimized black teenager forced into this dialogue against his will, and to give depth to the white bystander who must, from his place of privilege, choose whether to engage in it.
Both characters are successfully drawn. Rashad’s relative powerlessness makes him sympathetic, and yet it is also sad — the best he can do is to survive. Quinn must learn to override a lifetime of privilege-based conditioning. The image of Rashad on the pavement looms as Quinn’s friends repeat the mantra that Officer Galluzzo was just doing his job, the implication being that mistakes made in the line of duty should be forgiven, or not even be regarded as mistakes. Kiely critiques this viewpoint through Quinn, who evolves from bystander to someone willing to stand up. Questions linger in the reader’s mind: What does it mean for cops to be “doing their jobs?” To subdue and detain over the vaguest possible threat? Or to move through the world with measured restraint, placing themselves in harm’s way for the greater good?
It is perhaps too easy to call this worthy book timely and thought-provoking. Let us reach beyond simple praise and treat it instead as a book to be grappled with, challenged by, and discussed. “All American Boys” represents one voice — even better, two voices — in a national conversation that must continue beyond its pages. Rashad and Quinn tell their stories but never meet. In a brief final chapter set at a community protest, we hear their voices side by side, as dialogue, reminding us that perhaps, in these fraught days, that is what has been missing all along.