Hey 13!

September 12, 2011
In 13 candid short stories, Soto (Accidental Love) exposes important, perspective-altering moments in the lives of contemporary 13-year-olds, many with Latino backgrounds, and the spiraling emotions that are synonymous with adolescence. In a moving tale, a boy whose family is leaving its dilapidated country neighborhood—“creaky and unpainted houses, trailers parked one against the other”—is torn when his father orders him to leave his dog behind. In one of the wittier entries, a girl describes the revolving careers of her father, a dreamer and schemer who has peddled tulip bulbs, sharpened knives, and imported watermelons. Several protagonists have eye-opening experiences, including an opinionated middle-school honor student touring a college that she finds to be shockingly liberal, a teen working in a soup kitchen who wants to see what it’s like on the other side of the counter, and a tough-talking girl who vows to stop using profanity after she hears a toddler repeating it. Credibly capturing teen parlance, Soto introduces a range of personalities, from insecure to egotistical, and scenarios that encompass the unsettling, the provocative, and the uplifting. Ages 10–14.

September 1, 2011

Soto's latest short-story collection offers readers glimpses into the daily lives of young teens.

An inexperienced middle-school honor student's eye-opening visit to a liberal-arts college starts the collection, and a far less naïve young girl has an equally revealing visit to a friend's house in the 13th and final tale. In between, subjects range from the superficial to the profound, mimicking the life of the average 13-year-old. In "Twin Stars," best friends Teri and Luz dream of pop stardom, while Saul Garcia faces a crisis of conscience when he abandons his faithful dog in "A Simple Plan." Cynthia Rodriguez struggles with the issues of poverty and charity after serving a classmate at a local soup kitchen in "Finding Religion." Also realistically, not all of the tales feature epiphanies. Sometimes the bullies do win, and occasionally self-absorbed teenaged girls stay that way. While the collection offers a mixture of male (four) and female (nine) protagonists who are often explicitly Latino, the cover of the book features pictures of primarily young Latinas and resembles the type of teen fan magazine marketed exclusively at girls. This stylistic decision is unfortunate, as there are some gems for both genders in the collection.

If young males can get past the cover, this collection is good for all reluctant readers. (Short stories. 10-13)

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

January 1, 2012

Gr 5-8-Soto introduces readers to the experiences of 13 kids, all of whom are 13. One story stars a girl anxious to grow up until she has an uncomfortable interaction at the local mall. Another selection features a girl who is so confident about her newfound womanhood that she allows her ego to inflate, escalating in an awkward confrontation with a blind man. Many of these tales will make readers cringe because the embarrassment for the teens bleeds through the pages, a testament to Soto's writing. Boys and girls are equally represented. All of the entries are unique and could be classified as tween urban lit. The stories are not light but kids will be able to relate to the characters, which will make the book appealing even to more reluctant readers.-Elizabeth Swistock, Jefferson Madison Regional Library, Charlottesville, VA

Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 15, 2011
Grades 6-8 Soto has crafted 13 tales about being 13 and placed them between a cover that resembles the tweeniest celebrity magazine imaginable. Inside, the consistently strong, realistic pieces are fairly balanced between boy and girl protagonists and range in subjects from mall flirting to tough decisions about standing up to a parent for what you believe to be right. Most involve middle- to lower-income Latino families, Californian and Catholic, and though the individual characters are not all equally well developed, the central challenges each faces will resonate with readers, specifically the questions about how to cope when everything is changing. A few cultural references, such as the Jonas Brothers, may quickly date some of the stories, but the author's skill and the short story format are both well utilized. By providing insight into such experiences as Emma's first visit to a college campus, Joel's bullying, Ashlee's body awareness, and Little Ray's altar boy duties, this title offers both comfort and fun for tween readers.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)