The Art of Us

September 23, 2024
When teenage Ireland Raine’s father walks out on her again, she struggles to maintain an air of normalcy. Unhoused and only 17, Ireland stays quiet about her situation and continues to attend high school; her goal is to turn 18 and graduate before anyone notices her predicament. She flies under the radar until she befriends heartbroken newcomer Kal Ellis, who discovers her situation after catching her stealing food. Because Ireland reminds him of his late ex-girlfriend Brell, he can’t ignore his desire to help her. After he secretly confides in art teacher Mr. Wasden, Kal hatches a plan that results in Ireland temporarily moving in with rich bully Mara Washington. As the teens are forced to confront difficult truths, they begin to
see each other in a new light. Wright (Swimming in a Sea of Stars) fluidly handles sensitive subject matter surrounding death, parental neglect, and housing insecurity. Through the characters’ dynamic interactions, Wright injects the narrative with humor and familiar teen antics that prevent the challenges addressed from seeming bleak or hopeless. The protagonists cue as white. Ages 14–up.

October 1, 2024
An unhoused teen finds her foundation. Ireland Raine is living in a public bathroom on the outskirts of Arcata, California. She's pretty self-sufficient, having been raised by her grifter father, who skipped town several weeks ago, leaving her to face eviction from their apartment. Ireland has "only a hazy memory of a mother." She's determined to pull off the ruse of not allowing anyone at school to know she's unhoused. She's also got a crush on new kid Kal Ellis, who's an artist and plays in a band. When Kal sees Ireland for the first time, he's shocked by her uncanny resemblance to his beloved Brell, who died in a tragic accident. He becomes smitten with Ireland and recruits her to be part of the school mural project he's in charge of. Everything gets complicated quickly because, having followed her home one night (in a non-creepy way), he discovers her secret. But the weight of hiding this knowledge becomes an unbearable burden for Kal, setting off a series of events that threaten to come between the young couple, who are each holding on to demons they're unable to share with one another. Told from each of their third-person perspectives, the story doesn't rush readers along; it takes its time, thoughtfully allowing events to unravel and revealing secrets. Kal has dark hair and olive skin, and Ireland is cued white. A sweet love story and a thoughtful exploration of timely social issues.(Fiction. 14-18)

COPYRIGHT(2024) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

September 20, 2024
Grades 9-11 Prolific romance writer Wright offers a complex story of morals as high-schooler Kal, grieving over actions he didn't take, discovers his classmate Ireland is unhoused. Determined to keep her accommodations a secret, Ireland is surprised when she's connected to a family who can take her in--the home of her school adversary, Mara, who has secrets of her own. In alternating third-person chapters, Kal and Ireland wrestle with their decisions and circumstances as they move through their senior year, facing multiple challenges. Wright infuses Kal's love of music and Ireland's love of visual art throughout the novel. The two interests come together, perhaps with symbolic weight, in Mara, who displays both interests through mixed-media art and a love of Taylor Swift. A realistic, poignant take on tough topics, Wright compassionately confronts the subjects of abandonment, sexual assault, bullying, grief, and teen romance. Share with teen readers who appreciate straightforward prose and high drama stories from the perspective of independent teens similar to Kathleen Glasgow's Girl in Pieces (2016) and Connie King Leonard's Sleeping in My Jeans (2018).

COPYRIGHT(2024) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.