Literary works for young readers are just as important as ever, and talented authors continue to spin out books that will leave them turning page after page and going cover to cover. Memphis Parent has selected a few books to get you started on your summer reading fix, so grab a blanket, head outside, and bask in the sunshine while flipping through some exceptional YA works!
Indestructible Object
by Mary McCoy
When Mary McCoy’s Indestructible Object begins, Lee’s life is complicated and growing more so. There’s her impending graduation from high school, her mom’s move from Memphis to New Orleans, her breakup with her boyfriend, Vincent, and the subsequent dissolution of their podcast, Artists in Love. Then Lee begins a new podcast, Objects of Destruction, and meets Risa, a young woman who might be more than a friend. It’s a tangle of plans and ambitions, relationships reconfigured or reimagined. It might just be the most true-to-life YA novel to land on my desk in quite some time.
“Thankfully, I am not named after a Confederate general. My parents named me after the photographer Lee Miller,” Lee muses, listing her namesake’s many bohemian accomplishments, from World War II photojournalism and Vogue modeling to organizing topless picnics for her artist friends. “I guarantee you Robert E. Lee never once organized a topless picnic.” The quote says much about the tone of the novel — the arts (especially music) are held in high esteem, and there are quips aplenty. The wit and humor make Indestructible Object a page-turner.
Printz Honor award-winning author McCoy studied in Memphis, at Rhodes College, and her familiarity with the Bluff City shows throughout the novel. Risa and Lee visit Black Lodge to peruse the shelves of cult classics. The Time Warp Drive-In and the Memphis Flyer get mentions, as does the Amtrak station with its routes to New Orleans and Chicago. McCoy uses Memphis’ status as a liminal space to her advantage. Memphis is a small enough space that DIY counterculture movements can grow here, but its status as the “Buckle of the Bible Belt” sometimes puts those with vibrant personalities at odds with some culture here. As such, it might be the perfect setting for a music-themed LGBTQ coming-of-age story.
As Lee better learns to know and love herself fully, she also becomes more aware of the struggles of the people around her, of the privileges that have given her options not readily available to all of her friends. McCoy excels in this, telling a nuanced story of growth, love, and acceptance. — Jesse Davis
Mary McCoy’s Indestructible Object is due to be released June 15, 2021.
Josephine and the Quarantine
by Candace Echols
Quarantine is tough. That’s no secret at this point, and for some kids, having to spend that time apart from friends can make it even more difficult. So it’s no surprise that in Candace Echols’ Josephine and the Quarantine, the titular Josephine is looking for a friend to play with. After all, what’s a child to do when they’re bored and alone?
But Josephine isn’t simply looking for another human companion; no, she has her eyes set on a furry, cute, and cuddly friend to keep her company during the long quarantine days. But bringing a dog into the family will be no easy feat. In a story we’ve seen played out so many times before, a reluctant parent is hesitant to take the plunge.
Echols’ prose paints a stark contrast between Josephine and her mother. The heroine’s rhyming, sing-song thoughts are melodic, and let the reader flow through the pages. The passion that daughter feels may be channeling Echols herself (mom to a little Bernedoodle named Rookie). But in the book, mom’s short, curt responses put a stop to any momentum Josephine can muster. These arguments are all conducted in black-and-white and white illustrations, pulling readers into Josephine’s despondency.
But when the pandemic hits, mom has a change of heart. With her daughter’s best interests in mind, a canine companion starts to look more like a reality. This is when Josephine and the Quarantine starts to come to life. Faint colors begin to creep into the pages as mother and daughter discuss all the things they can do with a dog. As the possibility grows, Dare Harcourt’s illustrations truly blossom, bursting with pastel vibrancy and transmitting all the joy that comes with pet ownership.
Spoiler alert: Josephine gets her dog, but the relationship is one that benefits the whole family. It just goes to show that even when the going gets rough, there’s always a silver lining, one perhaps in the shape of man’s best friend. — Samuel X. Cicci
Take Back the Block by Chrystal D. Giles
2020 is in the rearview mirror, but the social and political ramifications that it brought won’t go away overnight. And while the issues might be tough for some kids to unpack, Charlotte, North Carolina author Chrystal D. Giles is looking to explore youth involvement with social issues in her middle-grade debut, Take Back the Block.
Wes Henderson is the coolest kid in his sixth-grade class, and all he wants to do is hang out with his friends and play video games. But the protests his parents keep taking him to are getting in the way, and prove to be a real drag.
But for Wes, everything changes when a big real estate developer comes to town. It makes an offer to buy Kensington Oaks, the neighborhood where he’s lived his whole life, and everything descends into chaos. Adults are arguing, his friends are arguing, and some families are thinking about moving out of the neighborhood.
With his home on the line, Wes springs into action, rallying friends and neighbors in an effort to find the missing piece of the puzzle that can save the neighborhood. Despite setbacks, Wes is undaunted. He pushes forward, showing young readers that, even though it might feel like they aren’t being heard, they can still have a voice when it comes to serious matters.
Giles’ book tackles many prominent issues: social justice, community, family. And crucially, it faces head-on the challenge of forced gentrification and the erosion of Black neighborhoods and their history. It’s crucial yet fun reading; Wes is an easy protagonist to root for, rallying his entire neighborhood together for a good cause. While some of the topics might be heavy, Giles deftly maneuvers readers through them. After all, if Wes can navigate through these difficult events, maybe we can, too. — SXC
Closer to Nowhere
by Ellen Hopkins
Growing up is tough, but it’s even tougher when uninvited guests show up in your home. In Ellen Hopkins’ Closer to Nowhere, the 12-year-old Hannah Lincoln has exactly the kind of life she wants. Her parents love her, school is a breeze both socially and academically, and being good at sports doesn’t hurt. But a new arrival threatens to derail her carefully curated school life.
But to tell her tale of familial strife and growing up, Hopkins tosses away the shackles of prose and turns, rather, to poetry. Each chapter is told in verse. Hannah’s neat thought pattern easily conveys what she’s thinking, and from the outset, it’s clear that cousin Cal, who just moved in with her after the death of his mom, isn’t going to fit in at school with his weird jokes and strange stories.
“Cal’s stupid stories/always have punch lines/attached. Usually they land/with a thud,” Hannah muses at an early school encounter. “A few kids snicker/in the way that says Cal/should just jump off a cliff.”
Cal’s elaborate tales — such as the time he is allegedly kidnapped by hippies, and only escapes by singing songs from the musical Hair — put a strain on Hannah and her parents. Each of his chapters is posed as a “Fact or Fiction” conundrum, with his potential fantasies causing readers to pull out their hair just as much as Hannah wants to.
But Hopkins’ verse pulls back the curtain, diving into what makes Cal the way he is. The aspiring writer is dealing with the emotional fallout of his previous home life, with the death of his mother and imprisonment of his father taking a heavy hold. Hopkins, an adoptee herself, utilizes her personal experience to get to the heart of Cal’s dilemma. He’s been burnt before, and is afraid to reach out to the family he still does have.
But while he and Hannah have different upbringings and don’t always get along, Hopkins’ storytelling always indicates that there’s a path forward for these two disparate souls. They are, after all, family. And no matter how hard it might be, it’s good for young readers to learn that there’s always room for a little empathy. — SXC