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All my life my parents have said that they wanted to shield me from politics, but that was a lie. They didn't want to shield me from politics any more than they'd want to shield me from air. They just wanted me not to notice what I was breathing. If every part of our lives is a decision that someone is making for us, then everything is political.
Mariana Ruiz's dad has always been her hero. He says that he became a politician so that he could make the world a better place, and Mari's always supported that dream. But ever since he started his campaign for U.S. President, Mari has been having doubts. The media scrutiny and unreasonable expectations are making Mari feel powerless and violated, but her dad brushes off her concerns. Even Mari's mom doesn't seem to be listening anymore when Mari tries to express her feelings. As Mari starts to lose faith in her dad's promises to her, she starts to realize that his political promises might not hold much weight either. Does Mari agree with her father's stances? Does she even actually want him to win? Will she be able to make her own voice heard?
While I find it a bit unbelievable that fifteen-year-old Mari would have no idea what her father's policies are, after a lifetime of attending speeches and rallies, overall I think Running presents a very realistic and nuanced look at a young teen becoming disillusioned with her rosy image of her parents and becoming politically awakened. As Mari begins to feel emotionally abandoned by her family, she turns to some new friends who open her eyes to the real consequences of her father's policies. Environmental activism takes the main stage in the book, but there are also mentions of LGBTQ+ rights and immigration reform.
I liked the plotlines of Mari getting involved in activism, but I personally felt more compelled by Mari's deteriorating relationship with her family. In the flurry of campaigning, Mari's rights and desires are continually brushed aside by her parents, until she feels as though she has no agency at all. Every assertion of personality that doesn't align with the campaign is accused as "betraying" her father, or "sabotaging" the campaign. Basically her dad acts like a complete man-child completely dismissing his actual child and her needs. I felt so frustrated and angry along with Mari, and couldn't help but root for her to stand up for herself to her parents. I really got in my feelings with this one, which is the main reason I liked it so much.
There's no perfect conclusion to all of Mari's problems (which would have been too unrealistic) but her character growth over the course of the book provides hope for her future. As a personal preference, I would have liked to have had more of a cathartic confrontation between Mari and her dad than there was, but the ending was still satisfying in a lot of ways. I loved taking this journey with Mariana, and I think this is a really great YA book for teens who find themselves at odds with their families politically.
TW: brief instances of bullying, references to homophobia and racism, illness due to contaminated water, media infringement including dissemination of photos of a minor
Thank you so much to the publisher for providing me with this eARC via NetGalley and ALC via Libro.fm in exchange for an honest review!