Fighting Words

May 15, 2020
Her beloved older sister has always kept Della safe; now that both are secure in foster care, why is Suki pushing her away? Della, 10, barely remembers their mom. For five years after the meth-cooking incident that got her incarcerated in a Kansas penitentiary, the girls lived with her predatory boyfriend, Clifton. (He's now in jail awaiting trial thanks to Suki's quick thinking.) With their plainspoken foster mother, Francine, providing needed stability, Suki, 16, lands a part-time job, and Della makes friends. Far behind academically, Della's advanced in reading predatory behavior. Her friends have been taught to ignore boys' physical bullying, so they're shocked when Della fights back at school. (She's punished but undeterred.) Suki appears to thrive until she learns her "permanency plan" to achieve independence at 18 and gain custody of Della is unworkable. As Suki unravels, Francine's urgent requests to arrange counseling for the girls go unheeded, with near-catastrophic results. The focus throughout, rightly, is on the aftermath of abuse, the content accessible to middle-grade readers but not graphically conveyed. Believable and immensely appealing, Suki, Francine, and especially Della (all are white, though Della is a bit "browner" than Suki) light up what might have been an unremittingly bleak story: Charting a path to wholeness is hard enough; the human roadblocks they encounter make it nearly insurmountable. Readers will root for these sisters along every step of their daunting journey. Refusing to soft-pedal hard issues, the novel speaks with an astringent honesty, at once heartbreaking and hopeful. (author's note) (Fiction. 9-13)

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Starred review from June 29, 2020
In Tennessee, Delicious “Della” Nevaeh Roberts, 10, has always counted on the fierce, wolflike love of her 16-year-old sister, Suki. Suki raised Della after their mother was incarcerated for a meth-related accident and they were left with her truck driver boyfriend, Clifton. But when Suki finds Clifton pulling down Della’s underwear, the girls flee and are placed in the care of gruff foster mother Francine. Della gradually adapts to the safety of her new life, enjoying a new friendship but occasionally getting in trouble for trying to stop a physical bully in her class. For Suki, however, newfound stability results in a mental health decline that goes unchecked at first, despite Francine’s attempts to get her help. Della’s tough, straightforward narration pulls no punches (“I’ve learned that some things are almost impossible to talk about because they’re things no one wants to know”) as she learns the power of using her “big mouth” and inspires others to tell their stories when and how they are able. Sharp characterizations by Newbery Honoree Brubaker Bradley (The War That Saved My Life) create an essential, powerful mirror and window for any reader: “I was glad, you know, to read the book. To know it didn’t only happen to me.” An author’s note includes resources for young readers. Ages 10–up. Agent: Ginger Knowlton, Curtis Brown.

Starred review from July 1, 2020

Gr 5 Up-Della's story starts as a flash-forward, beginning with the easy part. The easy part isn't actually easy. Della and her older sister Suki are in foster care, having run away from Clifton, the man they'd been living with since their mother was incarcerated. Clifton had threatened them for years, telling them if people found out he wasn't their father, he wouldn't be able to keep them and they'd have nothing to eat and nowhere to live. When Suki catches Clifton molesting Della, and takes pictures for evidence, the two ultimately end up in protective custody. Della is a conscientious narrator, always alerting readers to the harder parts of her story. Her tough exterior is misunderstood by her teacher, who takes issue with her language (the word "snow" is used throughout as a substitute for stronger terminology) but Della starts thriving, making friends and beginning to trust her foster mother Francine. Yet Suki is getting worse; she is plagued by nightmares, refusing to see her friends, and fighting with Della for the first time. A content warning for her suicide attempt is necessary, as the ultimate truth emerges that Suki herself was sexually molested by Clifton for eight years. Despite the horrors the sisters have endured, there is humor and warmth in this multifaceted, brave novel. Bradley creates fully developed, believable characters that readers will root for. It is heartwarming to see the sisters evolve as characters, as they begin to get help for all they have witnessed and experienced. VERDICT Raw and honest, this ultimately empowering novel is an important book for readers of all ages. Adults may want to follow up or simultaneously read the book with younger readers to discuss the difficult issues addressed.-Juliet Morefield, Multnomah County Lib., Portland, OR

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Starred review from August 1, 2020
Grades 5-8 *Starred Review* The past year or so has seen an influx of middle-grade novels exploring child sexual abuse and consent. This story, no PSA, is an honest slice of a difficult life?unvarnished, painful, and raw?told by 10-year-old Della, who has browner skin than her fair sister, a mouth like a sailor, and doesn't take snow from anybody. See how that snow works? She tells the story of how she and her 16-year-old sister, Suki, ended up in foster care. It's told in fits and starts as Della warms up to talking about the worst things that happened to them, offering the easy stuff first: their mother's incarceration for cooking meth, bouncing around to new schools, being bullied, and being poor. Della's a powerhouse of a protagonist who demonstrates that being strong doesn't preclude being scared or vulnerable or angry. Bradley gradually introduces safety and hope into their world without denying the work involved in achieving and hanging onto both. The trauma of sexual abuse is omnipresent, even before it's named, though the details of what happened are left largely unsaid. The sisters' fierce love for each other helps them survive, as does the additional help they eventually find. Bradley ends with advice and resources for any kid struggling with abuse or thoughts of suicide. Prepare to read furiously.Women in Focus: The 19th in 2020(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)