November Ever After

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's 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 Cahners Business Information.|

VOYA - Voya Reviews

Amy has become a loner since her mother's death, and she turns away from everyone's attention in fear that they are being nice to her out of pity. She feels secure with her outgoing friend, Sara, with whom she has had many humorous adventures since grade school. When Sara develops a friendship with Anita, however, Amy feels left out. Amy's father, preoccupied with his own grief and his job as a pastor, is not much help. To cover the void and to be closer to Sara, Amy joins the chorus of the school play in which both Sara and Anita have lead roles. There she meets Peter, and although they become close enough friends to have a date, Amy is not completely comfortable with new friendships. She thinks she likes Peter, but is unsure what to do. The story's pivotal point occurs when Sara tells Amy that she feels for Anita the way Amy feels for Peter. This revelation makes Amy feel betrayed. Her father's pastoral advice is to hate the sin and love the sinner. This rather abrupt comment and lack of discussion give Amy pause, but she soon realizes that Sara is still the same person and that their closely bonded friendship will continue forever. Although the story and characters are realistic and the adventures of the friends are amusing, the novel slows in the middle. Readers might be left feeling that they want more. The book is a quiet, gentle tale of grief, growth, and friendship that will need some booktalking to get it off the shelf. VOYA CODES: 3Q 3P J (Readable without serious defects; Will appeal with pushing; Junior High, defined as grades 7 to 9). 1999, Holiday House, Ages 13 to 15, 171p, $16.95. Reviewer: Kitty Krahnke

School Library Journal

Gr 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 Cahners Business Information.