Thanks for the Trouble

Starred review from November 9, 2015
In response to a college application question (“What was the single most important experience of your life?”), Parker Santé, a mute, Hispanic 17-year-old, writes an incredible story. When he steals a wad of cash from a silver-haired, sharp-witted girl named Zelda, who is planning to throw herself off the Golden Gate Bridge, Parker isn’t sure what to make of her. After agreeing not to jump until her money is spent and Parker promises to apply to college, the two embark on a breakneck tour of parties, shopping, and confrontations with Parker’s mother, an alcoholic consumed by memories of her deceased husband. Parker may not believe that Zelda is, as she claims, 246 years old, but there’s no doubt that she helps him rediscover a longing to participate in the world. Wallach (We All Looked Up) delivers well-rounded, witty characters (“Thinking of your parents being young is like thinking of Winnie-the-Pooh going to the bathroom: just fucking weird”)—all contemplating whether living a full life is better than living a long one. Bittersweet moments intersect with the intricate fairy tales Parker writes, compelling readers to judge what is real and what is make-believe. Ages 14–up. Agent: John Cusick, Folio Literary Management.

Seventeen-year-old Parker has been unable to speak since his father's death in a car accident years ago. Narrator Francisco Pryor Garat gives a subdued performance that reflects Parker's detachment when he meets and spends two adventurous days with Zelda, a girl who defies categorization. Garat reads with a Spanish accent, an odd choice considering that Parker was born and raised in San Francisco speaking English. The accent becomes jarring when Garat uses it for Zelda's dialogue as the character is said to be speaking in a Southern accent. Even so, Garat's earnest tone gives words time to breathe and slowly builds the hope that grows in Parker and finally brings him back to the world. Unusual, surprising, and moving. A.F. © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine