The Fix

July 15, 2015
A friendship with a troubled classmate helps Macy confront the childhood sexual trauma she's kept secret for years. Macy first met Sebastian when he moved to her suburban town in elementary school, but it's at her friend Rebecca's party many years later that Macy first gets the sense that Sebastian really sees her. Then, the next morning, Sebastian disappears; the rumor mill has it he's gone to the psych ward after a suicide attempt. Macy and Sebastian's brief but intimate conversation at the party sparks a series of changes in Macy: she starts visiting Sebastian in the hospital, she twists her blond hair into dreadlocks, and she begins-slowly, and not always voluntarily-to make sense of her past. Flashbacks-matter-of-fact, never graphic or sensationalized, and fraught with ambivalence-are handled particularly well. Each of Macy's current relationships is carefully imagined, each unique but shaped in its own way by Macy's past trauma. The downfall here is the dreadlocks. In an era in which teen literature is increasingly under fire for its lack of racial diversity, a blonde, presumably white character putting on a traditionally black hairstyle as a symbol of her own toughness and self-acceptance feels catastrophically out of touch. A powerful story of healing undermined by its central symbol. (Fiction. 14-18)

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September 1, 2015

Gr 9 Up-Seventeen-year-old Macy Lyons has been living with a terrible secret for the past 10 years. She copes by hiding the truth from everyone, including herself. At a party one night, she meets Sebastian, who recognizes a kindred, troubled soul. While Sebastian struggles with his drug addiction and going through rehab, Macy starts remembering the sexual abuse she suffered between the ages of seven and 12 at the hands of her cousin. It doesn't help that while she believes her parents know about the abuse, they continue to shower her cousin with favors and money. Macy struggles to deal with the memories on her own while dating her best friend, working at a summer camp with young children, and coping with her family's dysfunction. She is angry at everyone, especially herself, and only when she starts to break her silence does she realize that she needs help. As this story is told in first person, readers learn of Macy's experiences as she starts to face her memories and the sexual abuse she went through. Sebastian spends a good deal of the book in rehab, where Macy visits him. No mention of counseling or therapy is mentioned for Macy, however. Drugs, alcohol, and sex are referenced often throughout the story. While Macy's character and experiences are genuine, readers may have a hard time connecting with her until later in the novel. Though the protagonist finds peace with her past, the ending is a bit too neat to be wholly believable. Back matter includes resources on getting help for suicide, drug abuse, and sexual abuse. VERDICT An additional purchase for larger collections of YA realistic fiction.-Natalie Struecker, Atlantic Public Library, IA

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