Beulah Land

November 1, 2017

Gr 10 Up-A heartfelt story offering readers a window into the life of a teenaged lesbian in a contemporary poor Ozark community. In a plot that works hard to include the familial effects of meth cooking, a culture turning a blind but knowing eye from organized dog fighting, and a family fractured by ill-kept secrets, shame, and blame, Vi and her best friend Junior come off as sweet kids who are brave and true. However, like most of the rest of a bulging cast-the local vet, Vi's widowed mother and slightly younger sister, the town's criminal element, and the dishonest sheriff-so many details related to character development and motivations clash from one passage to the next that it's difficult to get a clear sense of anyone as authentic. The feelings described in discrete passages often resonate, but it's stringing these emotions together that reveals an unpolished whole that had compelling potential. The fact of Vi's poverty is stated and restated frequently while trappings that make even that supposed given questionable also abound: the sisters each have phones; the family of three owns multiple vehicles; the house includes an Internet-connected laptop and walls that apparently are thick enough that the sisters can converse at length without their mother overhearing from an adjoining room. VERDICT At a time when well-crafted, fully developed novels featuring both LGBTQIA teens and underprivileged family situations are in good supply, this one offers little that expands or even echoes so many alternatives.-Francisca Goldsmith, Library Ronin, Worcester, MA

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 15, 2017
In a small town deep in the Missouri Ozarks, a family rivalry puts Violette Sinclair's life in danger. Vi has suffered homophobic remarks ever since she was caught kissing a girl four years ago. When Dale Woodbine starts to threaten violence against Vi and her family, Vi realizes that Dale's animosity goes deeper than her sexuality--it's rooted in a mysterious history between Vi's mother and the Woodbine family. Now, Vi and her best friend, Junior, are on a mission to understand the Sinclair-Woodbine feud and to get Dale locked away before he can make good on his threats. Vi is an enterprising protagonist who admirably takes her family's safety into her own hands, often to the point of foolhardiness. However, Vi's identity as a gay teenager is unconvincing; she rarely reflects on her own sexuality despite its relevance to the plot, leaving readers to guess at her perspective on it. The distinctive dialect used by most characters successfully immerses readers in the all-white setting, although an overabundance of unusual idioms occasionally stretches credibility. The linear plot is uncomplicated, and the reason behind the familial enmity becomes glaringly obvious far before Vi figures it out. Awkwardly, much of the setting and action are implied through clunky dialogue. It's a compelling premise, but the execution misses the mark. (Fiction. 13-17)

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