The Memory of Things

July 18, 2016
This somber yet hopeful novel from Polisner (The Summer of Letting Go) begins on the morning of September 11, 2001, with her teenage protagonist, Kyle Donahue, fleeing across the Brooklyn Bridge, worrying about his first-responder father, his mother who is flying home from California, and his incapacitated uncle who needs his care. While on the bridge, Kyle runs into a girl covered in ash and wearing angel wings, and takes her home. Referred to as “the girl” throughout most of the novel, due to her amnesia, her presence adds a dimension of mystery to this story. As Polisner delves into one of the most emotionally wrenching days in modern American history, Kyle’s narration gives a play-by-play-like overview that’s frequently interrupted by short, free-verse passages that reflect the girl’s confused mental state. The tentative romantic feelings that develop between Kyle and the girl read more like a detour than an integral aspect of the plot, but they underscore the uncertainty, bewilderment, and grasped-for sense of connection during the immediate aftermath of the attacks. Ages 12–up. Agent: Jim McCarthy, Dystel & Goderich Literary Management.

June 15, 2016
After the 9/11 attacks, a New York City high schooler takes in a traumatized teen girl suffering from temporary amnesia.On Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001, white, 16-year-old Kyle Donohue flees from Stuyvesant High School in downtown Manhattan toward his home in Brooklyn Heights. While running across the Brooklyn Bridge, he spots a white girl covered in ash and wearing elaborate costume wings, so he makes a split-second decision to keep her safe. Kyle takes the scared "bird girl" to his apartment, where his uncle, who uses a wheelchair and is recovering from a spinal-cord injury, is the only person waiting. Kyle's dad is an NYPD officer who's working around the clock at ground zero, while his mother and younger sister are stuck at LAX, unable to return to New York. The bird girl can't remember much of anything, but as the days unfold, she begins to recover flashes of her memory and to become attached to sweet Kyle, who's clearly smitten. But they both know she'll eventually need to leave the bubble of security they've created. The author tells their story in alternating points of view, his in prose and hers in spare, erratically spaced verse that effectively communicates her disorientation. A love letter to the New Yorkers who rallied together, this is also an exploration of the intense bonds that form during a crisis. Detailed and well-researched, it's sure to make young readers curious about those unforgettable days after the twin towers fell. A fictional but realistic tale of how two New York City teens survived the unthinkable together. (Fiction. 12-17)

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July 1, 2016

Gr 7-10-For a generation of teens who have no memory of 9/11, this title will give context to a tragedy they may not fully understand. This work opens with the confusion and commotion of the morning of September 11, 2001. On the rush home from his evacuated high school, 16-year-old Kyle rescues a girl ready to jump from the Brooklyn Bridge wearing giant wings and covered in ash. Suffering from temporary amnesia, the girl develops an intimate relationship with Kyle in the chaotic week following the terrorist attack. The alternating narration between the two of them, with the girl's free verse aptly fitting her befuddled state, presents two different perspectives. Captured by the way Kyle keeps busy with mundane tasks like cooking and doing laundry despite the crisis outside, the feelings of restlessness and uncertainty that follow any catastrophe are well portrayed. Comparisons are drawn to the bodies found in Nazi concentration camps and the destruction of the Ugandan Bush War, which Kyle's best friend lived through. Newspaper headlines and pop culture references plant this tale firmly within the time period, while the imagery of the white ash and black smoke is effectively described. The story is told without dipping into sentimentality, although the author's voice does slide through occasionally when Kyle refers to the resilient spirit of New Yorkers. An author's note relays Polisner's personal connection to the story and her process in creating this ultimately hopeful offering. VERDICT A poignant novel for all YA collections.-Carrie Shaurette, Dwight-Englewood School, Englewood, NJ

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 15, 2016
Grades 9-12 When the first plane hits the World Trade Center, 16-year-old Kyle is contemplating zen koans in Mrs. Bright's English class. By the second attack, Kyle is staggering through the smoky streets of Manhattan, where he discovers a lone wing-clad girl near the edge of the Brooklyn Bridge. Together, they flee to Kyle's nearby apartment, only to realize they are hopelessly cut off from the rest of the world. Kyle's father, an officer in the Joint Terrorism Task Force, is stationed at the gruesome Pile, and his mother and sister are stranded indefinitely in California. The girl, on the other hand, is an utter enigma: she can no longer remember her own name. The narrative alternates between Kyle's convincing prose and the girl's more infrequentand at times, clichelyric interjections. Ultimately, Polisner shines in her subtle portrayals of minor charactersKyle's immobilized uncle Matt and Ugandan refugee classmate Marcusand Kyle's palpable compassion for them. Overall, a touching look at the power of selflessness, memory, and hope in the face of tragedy.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)