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A review by mrskatiefitz
The Swift Boys & Me by Kody Keplinger
4.0
In her middle grade debut, YA author Kody Keplinger creates a portrait of a friendship between 12-year-old Nola and the three boys who live next door to her: her best friend, Canaan Swift, his older brother, Brian, and his younger brother, Kevin. Nola and the boys have big summer plans to earn money and go to the circus together in August, but everything changes abruptly when Mr. Swift walks out on his family in the middle of the night. Suddenly, Brian is the man of the house, Canaan is a bully, and Kevin has gone completely mute. Worst of all, there is no room left in their lives for Nola or the circus. As Nola watches the Swift boys' pain from the sidelines, she slowly begins to understand the impact of loss and to contemplate how her own losses might shape her future.
This book is unique among this year's middle grade titles because of its tone and mood. As compared with even the quietest of novels, it is highly introspective and nostalgic. The story provides many wistful glimpses into summers past as Nola laments this year's unpleasant changes. Admittedly, there does seem to be a tendency among middle school kids to look back on their early childhood days and reminisce, but Nola's observations about the past seem too mature and too wise for her age. It is as though her experiences have been filtered through adult, rather than tween, eyes.
The story also lacks any comic relief, so it feels like one long eulogy to a friendship forever changed. The reader almost needs to take a break every couple of chapters to keep from becoming depressed, as even Nola's best moments are bogged down by a sense of overwhelming sadness and loneliness. Because of this more somber approach, it is difficult to pinpoint who might be the likely readers for this book.
On the plus side, though, the setting is refreshingly new. Nola lives in an area of Kentucky where many people don't have much money, and her family and the Swifts share a duplex. The characters speak with Southern accents, using words like "ain't" and "y'all" that help readers fall into the culture of Nola's community. So many middle grade stories are set in bland upper middle class homes in nondescript neighborhoods, so this more specific setting is decidedly welcome.
The overall emotional impact of this is so powerful that unexpected tears might just catch the reader off guard in the last few pages of the book. Still, the seriousness of the story might make this a harder sell than the more fun-looking cover suggests. It is likely that readers who enjoy Kody Keplinger's YA work will try this book out of loyalty to the author, but the ones who like it most will probably be considerably older than the target demographic.
This book is unique among this year's middle grade titles because of its tone and mood. As compared with even the quietest of novels, it is highly introspective and nostalgic. The story provides many wistful glimpses into summers past as Nola laments this year's unpleasant changes. Admittedly, there does seem to be a tendency among middle school kids to look back on their early childhood days and reminisce, but Nola's observations about the past seem too mature and too wise for her age. It is as though her experiences have been filtered through adult, rather than tween, eyes.
The story also lacks any comic relief, so it feels like one long eulogy to a friendship forever changed. The reader almost needs to take a break every couple of chapters to keep from becoming depressed, as even Nola's best moments are bogged down by a sense of overwhelming sadness and loneliness. Because of this more somber approach, it is difficult to pinpoint who might be the likely readers for this book.
On the plus side, though, the setting is refreshingly new. Nola lives in an area of Kentucky where many people don't have much money, and her family and the Swifts share a duplex. The characters speak with Southern accents, using words like "ain't" and "y'all" that help readers fall into the culture of Nola's community. So many middle grade stories are set in bland upper middle class homes in nondescript neighborhoods, so this more specific setting is decidedly welcome.
The overall emotional impact of this is so powerful that unexpected tears might just catch the reader off guard in the last few pages of the book. Still, the seriousness of the story might make this a harder sell than the more fun-looking cover suggests. It is likely that readers who enjoy Kody Keplinger's YA work will try this book out of loyalty to the author, but the ones who like it most will probably be considerably older than the target demographic.