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March 1, 2020

Gr 9 Up-After Kayla's recent suicide attempt, her mom sends her away from their native Trinidad, thinking that will somehow cure her. Kayla experiences depression and her traditional, closed-minded mother refuses to acknowledge her daughter's condition as anything but a weakness in her character. Now Kayla lives with her aunt and her aunt's girlfriend in Canada. As she tries to adjust to unfamiliar surroundings, she takes stock of her life and the circumstances that have landed her in a foreign country with people she barely knows. Though Kayla misses her best friend, Akilah, and feels nostalgic for the sights and smells of her homeland, she slowly acclimates to her new surroundings, especially after she meets an attractive boy with whom she enjoys spending time. It is not until her mother unexpectedly shows up in Canada that Kayla realizes just how much she wants to stay in her new home. Allen-Agostini depicts the culture of her homeland with honesty and enlightening details. She perfectly captures the desperation of a young girl who is trapped between her undeniable experience of depression and what others expect of her. Though at times the writing lacks eloquence, the straightforward prose does a good job of delivering important messages about acceptance and mental illness. VERDICT Recommended for libraries looking to bolster their YA collections with fiction centering on teenage mental health and developing feelings of belonging.-Karin Greenberg, Manhasset High School, NY

Copyright 2020 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 1, 2020
Grades 8-10 An accessible look at teen anxiety and depression through the lens of a Trindadian girl, Allen-Agostini's (The Chalice Project, 2009) second YA novel is an immersive look at different ways the disorder can be disruptive and damaging to young people. After attempting suicide, the 14-year-old protagonist (her name is not mentioned until the very end of the story) is shipped from her home in Trinidad to live with her aunt and aunt's partner in Canada, and she spends most of the book trapped inside her own head with dispiriting thoughts about her intelligence and appearance. While she does take antidepressants and antianxiety medication, they are not portrayed as a panacea or quick fix; instead, they are just one of several tools she uses to fight the disease. The book shines in its depictions of the physical and emotional aspects of anxiety and depression. While the deliberate pacing and introspective focus of the story may not appeal to all readers, teens of color coping with mental illness will find common cause with this Trini girl's journey toward self-actualization and healing.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)

May 18, 2020
After a major depressive episode leads to hospitalization, 14-year-old Kayla is sent from Trinidad to Canada, where her Aunt Jillian and her partner, Julie, prove far more understanding of Kayla’s mental health needs than her traditional, emotionally distant mother. Kayla still misses “home home” and her best friend Akilah, and she continues to struggle: catching the right bus, for example, causes her to teeter on the edge of a panic attack. When another episode sets Kayla back, her mother decides it’s time to come home, but the loving support system and new connections she has established in Canada have started to feel more nourishing. Allen-Agostini (The Chalice Project) uses clear, concise prose to break down the daunting reality of depression and anxiety. Strong interpersonal dynamics balance hard themes, including homophobia, suicidal ideation, troubled parent relationships, and the minimization of depression, resulting in a quietly optimistic story. Ages 14–up. Agent: Margot Edwards, Rights Consultancy.

July 1, 2020
After a suicide attempt, Kayla, a fourteen-year-old brown-skinned girl from Trinidad, is packed off to Canada by her strict single mother to recover in the loving care of Kayla's free-spirited aunt. Throughout the summer, she receives treatment for anxiety and depression, adjusts to the twin novelties of suburban Edmonton and Aunty Jillian's lesbian relationship (which is interracial), and contemplates the differences between life in Canada and life back in Trinidad. Her first romance and the troubled mother-daughter relationship drive the plot as she realizes what "home" really means and in which country her future lies. Kayla's first-person narrative, which includes interspersed diary entries as well as reflections on serious issues such as homophobia and teenage pregnancy, is by turns moving, insightful, and wry, providing an authentic window into the perceptions of a teen suffering from depression. Her self-absorption, while reasonable, is glossed over; thus, the book misses an opportunity to explore an oft-misunderstood aspect of mental illness as well as the strain it can have on relationships. The author's attempts to broaden perspectives on LGBTQIA+ people and mentally ill people give the novel more depth than some of Kayla's references to Trinidadians ("real Trinis"; "Trinidadians made jokes about everything. We laughed at life"). This and the sporadic intrusion of an adult-sounding voice are minor flaws in an otherwise thoughtful and well-paced story filled with realistic and complex family dynamics. Summer Edward

(Copyright 2020 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

July 1, 2020
After a suicide attempt, Kayla, a fourteen-year-old brown-skinned girl from Trinidad, is packed off to Canada by her strict single mother to recover in the loving care of Kayla's free-spirited aunt. Throughout the summer, she receives treatment for anxiety and depression, adjusts to the twin novelties of suburban Edmonton and Aunty Jillian's lesbian relationship (which is interracial), and contemplates the differences between life in Canada and life back in Trinidad. Her first romance and the troubled mother-daughter relationship drive the plot as she realizes what "home" really means and in which country her future lies. Kayla's first-person narrative, which includes interspersed diary entries as well as reflections on serious issues such as homophobia and teenage pregnancy, is by turns moving, insightful, and wry, providing an authentic window into the perceptions of a teen suffering from depression. Her self-absorption, while reasonable, is glossed over; thus, the book misses an opportunity to explore an oft-misunderstood aspect of mental illness as well as the strain it can have on relationships. The author's attempts to broaden perspectives on LGBTQIA+ people and mentally ill people give the novel more depth than some of Kayla's references to Trinidadians ("real Trinis"; "Trinidadians made jokes about everything. We laughed at life"). This and the sporadic intrusion of an adult-sounding voice are minor flaws in an otherwise thoughtful and well-paced story filled with realistic and complex family dynamics.

(Copyright 2020 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

Starred review from March 15, 2020
Can a place be your home if you don't feel like you belong there? Fourteen-year-old Kayla is a dark-skinned girl from Trinidad. After being hospitalized following struggles with mental illness--much to her mother's shame and disappointment--Kayla is sent to spend the summer in Canada with her Aunty Jillian and Jillian's partner, Julie. She now has to come to terms with and get treatment for her depression and anxiety, all while adjusting to living somewhere so different from the place she has known since birth--from the weather to the more tolerant culture. She sticks out in Edmonton and yet it is here that she has the room to be herself and to try and manage her mental health as best as she can. Allen-Agostini uses frank yet gentle prose to discuss serious topics like mental illness, complex familial dynamics, poverty, violence, and latent as well as blatant homophobia in this novel featuring a diverse cast of characters that focuses on a teen trying to cope with the harsh circumstances she's been dealt in life. With some chapters written as diary entries detailing Kayla's concerns, which range from body image and self-esteem to how to handle a crush, the story and voice feel authentic. This novel is sure to evoke sympathy and compassion in readers. A hopeful story about finding one's place and the sometimes-difficult journey to self-acceptance. (Fiction. 13-adult)

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