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Overview
These and other teens need help if they're ever going to decipher the weirdness of everyday life in these hilarious, heartfelt, and unflinchingly real short stories. The smallest of events-a stolen flute, an idle day, a game of paintball in the wild-turn out to be about the largest of problems: figuring out what it means to be alive.With real wit and understanding, Gary Soto takes readers into the lives of young people as they make their way in the strange world we all share.
Ten stories portray some of the struggles and hopes of young Mexican Americans.
Synopsis
In ten funny, heartbreaking tales, Gary Soto reveals the hopes and hearts of today's teens.
School Library Journal
Gr 6-9-Ten original short stories about Mexican-American teens in central California. The fundamental theme of "needing help" is the common thread among the stories, which range from the satirical to the peculiar to the humorous to the sad. Sometimes the "help" is administered in unusual fashion or never quite arrives at all, and each character is left to puzzle the complexity and edginess of life. One young man learns that sometimes a person is really telling the truth, despite evidence to the opposite. Another deals with having a girl mistake him for her boyfriend in a dark area at a dance and accidentally bestow upon him unexpected first kisses. One girl mourns the loss of her mother and tries to find evidence of the woman's spirit in every creak of the house. Another laments her inability to play golf, even against a frail old lady. Still another teen wishes desperately to turn around her family's terrible manners. These interesting characters placed in unique situations, and the thought-provoking endings, compensate for intermittent awkwardness in the telling. The occasional insertion of Spanish words is done skillfully so that even non-Spanish speakers will understand all aspects of the stories, which are similar in style and tone to Soto's Petty Crimes (Harcourt, 1998).-Diane P. Tuccillo, City of Mesa Library, AZ Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.
Editorials
From the Publisher
"Soto excels at getting into the minds of both boys and girls . . . Readers, Latino or not, have a good chance of seeing themselves and their feelings in these compelling stories."—Kirkus Reviews"Humorous . . . Thought-provoking."—School Library Journal