Jack Kerouac Is Dead to Me by Gae Polisner

But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.Īutumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart their mothers are still best friends. All characters seem to be white.Ī serviceable exploration of teen relationships. Unfortunately, JL’s mother’s mental illness is portrayed shallowly, the Kerouac element is not very compelling, and the setting is indistinguishable from Anytown, USA. The major strengths of the book are deft deployment of the emerging butterfly theme, first-person narration by a strong and insightful character, and honest descriptions of JL’s sexual relationship with Max.

JL finds solace in her relationship with her 19-year-old boyfriend, Max (who is a stereotype of the bad boy with a heart of gold), and in raising tropical butterflies from a kit her grandmother bought for her. Her former best friend, Aubrey, has found new friends. Her mother is sinking into a dissociative state, writing letters to the dead author. Her father has moved to California for work, and it is unclear when he will return. However, as a high school sophomore, JL has bigger worries. JL is baffled by their fascination (and likely so will most teen readers today be). Jean Louise, or “JL”-named for author Jack (Jean-Louis) Kerouac-has grown up with both her mother and grandmother fixated on the fact that in 1961, her then-teenage grandmother was kissed by Kerouac in a restaurant in their hometown of Northport, Long Island. Will JL jump on the back of her boyfriend’s motorcycle and light out for California to see her dad-or stay on Long Island with her mother?

Jack Kerouac Is Dead to Me by Gae Polisner