Review of The Kingdom of Back

The Kingdom of Back

Author: Marie Lu

Publisher: G. P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers

Publication Date: March 2020

    Nannerl Mozart is the older sister of Wolfgang “Woferl” Mozart. She too was born with a gift for music. At age eight, her playing on the clavier is already worthy of royal performances. There are three things holding her back from the future for which she should be destined. First, there is her tyrannical father, who has made it clear that he will only instruct her and permit her to perform until she becomes an adult. There is also her gender, as there are no female composers or performers in eighteenth century Austria. And then there is Nannerl’s brother. A prodigy as well, Woferl begins to outshine his sister, playing and composing at the tender age of seven, even teaching himself the violin. It seems that Nannerl will have no chance to be remembered for her gifts, until a stranger appears to her in a dream. In a magical land, which she later comes to call the Kingdom of Back, he offers her a chance to be remembered by the world, but the cost may be giving up her world as she knows it.

    The Kingdom of Back is an arresting story of the bond between the Mozart siblings, and the strain on that bond when they are forced to compete for fame. There are enough facts and historically accurate characters to infer that Lu took the time to carefully blend the Mozarts’ fictional story with known facts. The Kingdom of Back is smoothly interleaved with pieces of the Mozarts’ known, real life. The Kingdom comes to feel more like a final puzzle piece in the Mozarts’ story rather than simply an author’s imaginative idea. This is a fantastic read for YA or adult readers who enjoy historical fiction infused with mystery and magic, but also containing themes applicable to real life, including the deep bond between siblings and the difficulty of choices.

- D. K. Nuray

Review of The Left Hand of Darkness

The Left Hand of Darkness

Author: Ursula K. Le Guin

Publisher: Ace Books

Publication Date: March 1969

    “Light is the left hand of darkness | and darkness the right hand of light. | Two are one, life and death, lying | together like lovers in kemmer | like hands joined together, | like the end and the way.” The Left Hand of Darkness questions how far outside the surroundings of Earth and our social realities we will have to go to find the borders of who and what we are. Set on Gethen, a planet of permanent winter, a Terran (human to readers) envoy named Genly Ai interacts with aliens who would be identical to Terrans if not for the fact that the aliens have no set gender, changing from neutral to male or female during each mating cycle. In other words, Gethenians are fundamentally different. In a chronicle of Ai’s attempts to convince the societies on Gethen to join the Ekumen, the society of known worlds, Le Guin explores the complexities and frailties of different forms of government, the extent to which social interaction is controlled by gender, and who and how we might be if this elemental aspect of our nature were altered.

    As much as the book is about how we govern ourselves and how gender governs us, it is also about connection - about what binds us together when we remove the limitations of conventional social norms. Le Guin wove a delicate combination of otherworldly adventure, familiar human politics, and philosophy. Her story is dense and eloquent, requiring and capturing the reader’s full attention from the first page. Gethenian myths and beliefs add another layer of distinctions between Gethenians and Terrans. If I might fault The Left Hand of Darkness for anything, it would be for having a little too much social observation and critique packed into one read. While the underlying story is compelling, loading a narrative with what feels like a profound contemplation of the nature of humanity sometimes burdens the momentum of the story itself. But this is a complaint about what is a gripping, intimate, and intelligently sensitive novel.

    A half-century ago, the concepts that The Left Hand of Darkness addressed were progressive and thought-provoking. Le Guin’s vision was so powerful that they remain progressive and thought-provoking now. The questions Le Guin raises in the story are neither simple to pose in a novel nor easy to answer, so I would recommend this book to more mature YA readers and adults who enjoy thoughtful science fiction. 

- D. K. Nuray

Review of What If It’s Us

What If It’s Us

Authors: Becky Albertalli and Adam Silveria

Publisher: HarperTeen

Publication Date: October 2018

    Arthur is in New York City for one summer. His internship at his mom’s law firm comes with two less than welcoming female coworkers. All Arthur wants to do is go back to Georgia and see his two best friends again, especially after recently coming out. Being in New York is a dream come true, but a reminder that dreams and reality don’t always reconcile perfectly. Ben is a lifelong New Yorker. His Puerto Rican background has affected much of his life, but then again, so has being gay. A recent breakup - Ben’s first - sends him to the post office with a tightly sealed box holding tightly sealed memories, but that task ends up being more of an adventure than he could have anticipated. Ben and Arthur should never have met. Tall versus short, summer school student versus Yale hopeful, Georgia versus New York, but one coincidental moment brings them together. They don’t get each other’s numbers, they barely get each other’s names, but the moment is enough for a connection. Arthur and Ben have just one summer. They have three months for friendship, discord, understanding, and hopefully, love.

    What If It’s Us is a modern-day Cinderella. Instead of a glass slipper, there’s Instagram. Instead of a prince and a princess, there’s two princes. Their happily ever after might be diferent than a conventional fairytale. However, the elements of rapidly dwindling time and love found unexpectedly are familiar. The colorful language at parts is unnecessary, but also conveys the strident personalities and attitudes of most New Yorkers. What If It’s Us is fairytale fanfiction. Part of what makes it such an energetic, enticing book is that the fairytale themes of unexpected intensity, vulnerability, and the strength of a genuine bond are relatable. The tender hope of Arthur and Ben and the drama and imperfection of the characters infuses the capricious, fast-paced plot. The story is also written from the alternating perspectives of the main characters’, a format that lends itself well to the dual authorship. The language can be unrefined, the characters interactions with one another unfiltered and occasionally a touch too gritty, but I would highly recommend this story to young adult readers who enjoy romance and the allure of a findable destiny.

- D. K. Nuray

Review of A Raisin in the Sun

A Raisin in the Sun (original script publication)

Author: Lorraine Hansberry

Publisher: Vintage Books

Publication date: March 1959

    A Raisin in the Sun was written as a play about a black family, the Youngers, who are about to move into an all-white neighborhood in post-WWII southside Chicago. Despite being written as a script, it reads with a novel’s completeness and narrative continuity. The main characters are Mama, the matriarchal grandmother, her two children Walter Lee and Beneatha, Walter’s wife Ruth and their son Travis. Big Walter, the late grandfather, is also key in the development of the story. Each character’s personality, family role, and dreams are revealed in their conversations with one another. This dialogue sensitizes the reader to who each person wants to be and what conflicts their dreams have with segregation and the perspectives and dreams of their fellow family members.

    The family itself is relatable. The siblings get into silly fights, Mama does everything she can to support her children, and everyone is trying to make a way for themselves. The story is also rich in symbolism and metaphor, some of it obvious, but some subtle and requiring an understanding of the characters and their perspectives. Similarly, much of the superficially ragtag dialogue is rich with metaphor and symbolism. The Youngers’ daily conversations carry both a passion for life and a permeating sadness at its hardship.

    A Raisin in the Sun isn’t exactly new - it’s been out for six decades. Yet it is still read and analyzed as part of school curriculum. In a simple plot, Hansberry vividly captured setting, tangible emotions, characters that the reader can sympathize with if not empathize with, and an acute sense of the influence of segregation on the lives of black citizens when this story was published. A Raisin in the Sun is a dense, savorable read for middle grade all the way up to adult readers who enjoy rich historical fiction. Adults may be able to read much deeper into the story, particularly those with personal memories of this time in history, but it is a valuable story for any reader.

- D. K. Nuray