A Heart in a Body in the World by Deb Caletti

It had been a while since I had read a novel by Deb Caletti, but reading her newly released A HEART IN A BODY IN THE WORLD helped to remind me how much I enjoy her award-winning writing.  This story focuses on Annabelle who lives near Seattle and starts running one day after a drunk guy approaches her in an inappropriate way. It is clear that there has been trauma in Annabelle’s life and her family, single mom Gina, younger brother Malcolm, and Grandpa Ed all try to support her. In fact, her across the country run becomes a cause with a Go Fund Me page set up by her high school friends, and interviews arranged with high school newspapers along the way.  Annabelle reluctantly embraces this acknowledgment of her emotional pain and even begins making speeches. One of her struggles is “the sense that she must apologize for and atone for other people’s actions.” 

Here are just a few other quotes that illustrate Annabelle’s physical and emotional journey:  “Sometimes you just snap.  Snapping is easy when you’re already brittle from the worst possible thing happening.” “Worry is a different version of prayer.”  “She’s forever in a spinning round-ness of who she’s supposed to be and who she really is; what’s expected and what she really wants. When you spin like that, things get blurry.” “How weird, she thinks, that there are people who maybe don’t feel this thing, this endless buzz of nerves and fear and responsibility and control.”

Readers will empathize with her efforts both at running and with dealing with past events which are gradually shared in a series of flashbacks. Annabelle keeps a journal and many chapters start with notes about the heart like this one “There are only one and a half gallons of blood in the body at a time.  And you only have to lose two liters of it – one bottle of Diet Coke – and it’s over.” The story of A HEART IN A BODY IN THE WORLD will have wide appeal. And there are numerous connections with recent headlines, #MeToo or #WhyIDidntReport, and new non-fiction books like Rage Becomes Her.

 A HEART IN A BODY IN THE WORLD by Deb Caletti received starred reviews from Booklist, Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books, Kirkus, and Publishers Weekly. Highly recommended - Look for it on our shelves soon.

Places No One Knows by Brenna Yovanoff

There is so much emotional pain and growth in Places No One Knows by Brenna Yovanoff. This novel, set in a contemporary high school, is simultaneously full of astute introspection and denial or avoidance. Places No One Knows is a powerful read by a talented author.

The story is told in alternating voices by Waverly Camdenmar and Marshall Holt. She is the seemingly perfect girl who excels at academics and cross-country running, but she cannot sleep and at times seems barely in touch with reality.  He is dealing with a dysfunctional family by self-medicating with alcohol and drugs, hoping to feel less sensitive while also gaining a reputation as a loser. 

Somehow, they find each other – sort of. Waverly's dreams lead them to meet at night; ignoring each other during the school day. Each shares secrets – places no one knows – as they deal with the angst of being an older teenager – concerns about self-identity ("the gap between myself and the facade of myself must be growing exponentially"), family, truth, manipulative friends, peer pressure – and more peer pressure ("if you can prove someone else is a disaster, you never have to let them see what's wrong with you."). Places No One Knows has been called “achingly real” and is a very moving story with well-developed characters beyond Waverly and Marshall.  On her website, Yovanoff says, "It's about boys and girls and ideas and feelings and the towering shower of sparks that happens when all those things collide."

We will certainly be booktalking this title next Fall, particularly for fans of All the Bright Places or We Were Liars. Places No One Knows received starred reviews from Booklist, Kirkus and Publishers Weekly.