Pretty

May 22, 2017
Sayre’s engrossing second novel takes place in the same Brooklyn neighborhood as his debut, with Davis, Husky’s protagonist, playing a supporting role, along with their eclectic friends. Sophie, an African-American eighth grader, doesn’t mind being called pretty. “I guess I know I’m cute,” she reflects. “Especially when the look is right and the hair is on point.” She takes pains, however, to hide the ugly realities of her home life: the accumulated liquor bottles she recycles and her mother’s terrifying drunken rages. After one particularly awful night, her mother leaves for a monthlong work trip in Paris, and Sophie’s Auntie Amara moves in. Having an adult around who pays attention initially baffles Sophie, but she begins to let down her guard. As she spends more and more with Auntie Amara, including visits to her aunt’s hair salon and Harlem church, Sophie gains greater self-awareness and the courage to face the difficult choices that await upon her mother’s return. It’s a powerful story of growth and change, brimming with honesty and hope. Ages 10–up.