Searching for Sky

May 19, 2014
Two teenagers, stranded on a deserted island for most of their lives, must acclimate to the modern world after they're finally rescued, in Cantor's (Margot) fascinating, existential coming-of-age story. Sixteen-year-old Skyâwho's never known anyone but her companion River, her now-deceased mother, and the enigmatic Helmutâis suddenly forced to accept a grandmother who's a stranger and a world full of mysteries and contradictions, where words don't always mean what they seem. As Sky learns more about the Island from those around her, her positive memories are replaced by suspicion, anxiety, and uncertainty. All Sky wants is to reunite with River and return to the only place she considers home. Cantor shrewdly filters modern civilization through Sky's limited understandingâ"So I get into Car Cave, and I let her tie a rope around me, which she promises will keep me safe"âbut Sky ends up a fairly passive, reactionary protagonist as she struggles to understand complex human relationships against a backdrop that feels cold and foreign. The poetic portrayal of psychological isolation is hampered by superfluous subplots; nevertheless, Sky's story leaves a quietly haunting impression. Ages 12âup.

April 1, 2014
For Sky, contemporary California is a brave new world. As a young child, Sky was one of four survivors of a shipwreck. She has no memory of her life before she lived on Island, slept in Shelter and swam in Ocean. At 16, she now only has River, a slightly older boy, for company, and it's River who first spies the boat that will change their lives. Rescued from Island and brought to California, Sky struggles to navigate a new life she never wanted--one where she is separated from River and must live with her grandmother, who insists Sky's real name is "Megan." In the tradition of Emma Donoghue's Room (2010), the first-person, present-tense narration allows readers to see their familiar modern lives through Sky's fresh eyes, though Cantor occasionally ruins the effect by overusing the device. The development of secondary characters suffers to further the plot: Sky's grandmother is frustratingly inept at times, as is most of the "team of professionals" she assembles to help Sky acculturate. Nevertheless, it's still satisfying to see Sky's growth as the truth about her past is gradually revealed. Despite some shortcomings, an appealing and sensitive reverse-survival story. (Fiction. 12-17)

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May 1, 2014

Gr 8 Up-"Sky" and "River" have grown up together on a deserted island where they live with Sky's mother and River's father. Now both of the parents are dead, and while Sky is quite content with their life, River wants to be rescued and returned to civilization. A ship does come, and the two are taken to California to be reunited with their families. River goes willingly, but Sky tries to escape and seriously injures herself. Because no one in his family wants him, River must find a job and fend for himself. Sky, who has to go by her "real" name Megan, is sent to live with her grandmother. The adjustment is difficult since she has never experienced modern conveniences. When she reunites with River, despite her grandmother trying to keep them apart, she finds out the truth about their families. The early parts of the novel echo moments from The Blue Lagoon film. After Sky's return to civilization, her thoughts and actions are at times unbelievable and inconsistent-so wise in some ways and so out of touch in others. Her simplistic practice of naming things doesn't ring true, especially since she was three years old when she left her original home and would have been speaking in sentences and both parents and River, having spent more time in the "real" world, would know more than basic nouns. Despite its flaws, the book sustains interest and should appeal to teens. The blend of mystery, romance, family story, and paradise versus civilization makes for a quick and compelling read for those who don't question details too closely.-Janet Hilbun, University of North Texas

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2014
Grades 8-11 A boat arrives at the remote island on which Sky and River have spent the majority of their lives. They can't recall ever living in California, where the men who've come to rescue them are from. But now that their parents are dead, River and Sky follow the men to the unfamiliar world for the sake of their survival. Once in California, a media frenzy descends on the pair as they're thrust into a scary new world wholly unlike the place where they grew up. Meanwhile, they learn terrifying family secrets and their relationships, old and new, are transformed in uncomfortable, shocking ways. Sky is left bereft and bewildered. Now I am a girl without a place, the 16-year-old laments. In this reverse dystopian novel, Cantor (Margot, 2013) skillfully invites the reader to see our world and all its shortcomings and idiosyncrasies through Sky's questioning gaze. Readers will be captivated as Sky struggles to navigate her new universe, one that we know intimately but may never look at the same way again.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)