The Beginning of After

August 8, 2011
After Gayle Forman’s acclaimed If I Stay, books tackling the same topic—a girl surviving the death of her parents and brother in a car crash—face inevitable comparisons. And although there’s certainly room for more stories with this premise, Castle’s debut, while affecting, comes up short. Sixteen-year-old Laurel reluctantly goes to Passover dinner with her family and their neighbors, the Kaufmans, whose son, David, is an estranged childhood friend. After dinner, everyone except Laurel and David goes out for ice cream; only David’s father survives the subsequent accident, and he is left in a coma. While Laurel’s journey to recovery and her blossoming romance with David are compelling reasons to keep reading, the story never delivers the raw emotional truths expected. Laurel’s reactions to the accident get lost among other mini-dramas that pop up along the way, and the blunt descriptions of her feelings (as well as how early in the book the accident takes place, before the characters are really established) render her grief flat and generic. Too little “before” makes the “after” less wrenching. Ages 12–up.

November 1, 2011

Gr 7-10-Laurel is home doing her French homework while her parents and brother go out for dessert with the neighbors. A car accident kills everyone except the driver, her neighbor. Laurel's grieving is complicated by not knowing if the accident was the driver's fault (he had been drinking), and by a strained and complicated relationship with David, his son, who was not in the car either. With his mother dead and his father in a coma, David runs away and Laurel is left caring for his dog. Her grandmother moves in, and the story follows Laurel as she makes her way through senior year. Castle has created a strong and independent girl. Laurel struggles through a crisis even as she deals with more-typical teen problems. Two boys are love interests, but they are never Laurel's sole focus. She has her art; her college applications; a new job; and, most of all, her grief to deal with. Castle gives her a solid support system-a loving grandmother; an understanding guidance counselor; a sweet best friend; and a stereotypical, but well-intentioned, therapist. Perhaps all this support is why she copes so well. In fact, Laurel copes almost unbelievably well, breaking down and crying only a time or two throughout the entire 400 pages. The pace is slow, but the detailed writing and smart, realistically cool characters will be appealing to many girls. Offer this to teens who are waiting for the next Sarah Dessen book.-Geri Diorio, Ridgefield Library, CT

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 15, 2011

SAT prep and prom dreams consume 16-year-old Laurel's life, but all that changes the night her brother and parents are killed in a car accident.

At first Laurel denies her pain, burying it beneath school work, a new crush and plans for the summer, but seemingly random things begin to crack her façade. A crumpled corsage, a half-gallon of milk and the absence of her brother's favorite junk food all threaten to unglue her. At the insistence of her grandmother, Laurel finally seeks the professional help that she needs. Complicating matters is her emotionally charged relationship with David, the son of the man responsible for her family's death. Together they navigate the uncharted waters of the "after" that follows the tragedy. Laurel is generous, self-centered, loving, cold, hopeful and cynical--in a word, she is real. Castle expertly guides the narrative through the various stages of grief, refusing to shrink away from even the most difficult areas, where life and death collide. Readers may grow impatient with the slow-moving and sometimes too introspective story, but the fine writing makes up for what the story lacks in energy.

(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)