Killing Time in Crystal City

October 20, 2014
Seventeen-year-old runaway Kevin arrives in Crystal City with little more than a cast on his arm, the nickname Kiki Vandeweghe (after the former NBA star), and the address for his estranged uncle Sydney, the family’s black sheep. Asked how he got the cast by fellow bus passenger Stacey (who has a cast of her own), Kevin explains, “My Dad did it,” though the truth is less cut and dry, readers gradually learn. After Kevin arrives in the beach town, he moves in with his uncle (who describes his work fencing stolen luxury goods as a “perfectly reasonable redistribution of wealth... and a victimless crime. Like necrophilia”) and spends time with Stacey and another transient Molly, who has turned to prostitution to get by. Lynch (Little Blue Lies) parcels out details about Kevin father, his best friend, and why he left home through conversations, emails, and flashbacks, maintaining suspense. But it’s Kevin’s unshakable awkwardness (including a humiliating tendency to blush at Stacey’s every minor provocation), some dark twists, and Lynch’s proficiency for zingy banter that make this story about feeling like an outsider among outsiders leave a lasting impression. Ages 12–up.

November 1, 2014
A meditation on belonging, choices and denial. Kevin, a 17-year-old runaway, dreams of living as a romantic outsider, but fellow runaways Stacey and Molly sniff him out immediately. Utterly lacking in street smarts, Kevin is too earnest by half, and he reeks of privilege. During the day, he slums it with the girls or with a group of guys who live at Crystal City's disgusting beach, and at night, he eats well, showers and sleeps at his welcoming uncle Sydney's house. Kevin describes Sydney as his family's black sheep, but Sydney is in fact a charming, self-confessed criminal who cheerfully offers to kill Kevin's dad after Kevin implies that his broken arm is his dad's fault. Lynch's (Inexcusable, 2005; Angry Young Man, 2011) skill at sustaining an appealing voice while slowly unveiling the extent of his protagonist's self-deception is impressive: Kevin-a bumbler, but every bit as winning as his sociopathic uncle-is clearly suffering, but his struggles are both garden-variety and largely self-inflicted, particularly in comparison with the true desperation of Stacey, Molly and the men from the beach. It's easy to root for Kevin, but his self-pity and often cruel choices don't make him much of a hero. Ultimately, readers will wonder just who they've been getting to know and whether they really know him at all. (Thriller. 14-17)

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October 1, 2014

Gr 9 Up-After an encounter with his father that results in a broken arm, Kevin runs away to Crystal City in the hopes of reconnecting with his estranged uncle. Kevin's life has been unsettled since his parents divorced, and getting away from his boring town cannot happen soon enough. Meeting Stacey, who is antagonistic and flirtatious, and Molly, whom they save from a potentially disastrous hookup at the bus terminal, introduces him to the local teens of Crystal City. Kevin's uncle welcomes him but makes it clear that he will tolerate no foolish behavior. Stacey and Molly find shelter at a Catholic youth hostel, which has strict curfew hours and a mandatory Mass attendance requirement. Kevin's father sends pleading emails asking Kevin to contact him and return home. Casual sex is mentioned but not in detail, and the violence near the end of the story is shocking but not gratuitous. The boredom and lack of opportunity and amusements for young people in a decaying town are accurately depicted. Reasons for Kevin's desire to create a new life and identity are established through flashbacks involving his father and a friend, Jasper, with whom he loses his virginity. Kevin's conflict over associating with his new friends, especially when he gets involved in a home robbery, is palpable and authentic. This is a grim and unsettling look at teen aimlessness and homelessness in a down-on-your-luck town. Recommended for fans of the author or readers who enjoy dark, angsty reads and character-driven novels.-Jennifer Schultz, Fauquier County Public Library, Warrenton, VA

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 1, 2014
Grades 7-11 Kevin, who has run away from home, is headed for Crystal City, where he will live with his estranged father's brother, Uncle Syd, the family's black sheep. En route, Kevin meets Stacey, who, like him, sports a cast on her arm. Arriving in Crystal City, the two teens meet a third, Molly, whosmall worldis also wearing a cast. All three are homeless and, together, form an at-first fragile friendship. Desperate to find someplace he belongs, Kevin then finds a tentative tribe in a gaggle of homeless guys who live on the city's sorry excuse for a beach. But are they the friends he needs? Are the girls? And why has he left home? The answers are revealed as the narrative moves backward and forward in time. Lynch has written another fine, character-driven coming-of-age novel, informed by a dramatic tension between reality and possibility, that explores a teen's struggle to belong, whether in the city or at the home he has abandoned. The result is always absorbing and satisfying.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)