Review: Read Between the Lines
Jo Knowles next book, Read Between the Lines, comes out officially in March, but I'm lucky enough to take part in her ARC tour, and lucky to get to read this glimpse into the complicated thing that is life for small-town teens.
From the moment we meet Nate, whose broken middle finger not only gets him out of much-hated gym class but also allows him to flip off all the bullies in his life, raised middle fingers unify characters filled with all the insecurities, anger, and misunderstandings, and doubts so typical of teen life. One of this novel's great beauties is that the many different perspectives allow us to view one relationship--say the cheerleader who dates the closeted basketball star--from multiple perspectives. The reader, unlike the character, is able to understand how tricky and difficult a situation is for all involved.
Back when I was a German major, I specialized in Austrian literature, and one of the works that lingers in memory is Reigen, a play by Arthur Schnitzler that follows a series of interconnected sexual relationships through the social classes. (The play is also known as La ronde; a film based on the concept, 360, appeared in 2012). I found myself thinking of that play again as I read Jo's novel, but the more I thought, the more I realized the comparison was inadequate. While the play traces a circle, the novel gives that circle three dimensions--it traces a complete, complex world.
From the moment we meet Nate, whose broken middle finger not only gets him out of much-hated gym class but also allows him to flip off all the bullies in his life, raised middle fingers unify characters filled with all the insecurities, anger, and misunderstandings, and doubts so typical of teen life. One of this novel's great beauties is that the many different perspectives allow us to view one relationship--say the cheerleader who dates the closeted basketball star--from multiple perspectives. The reader, unlike the character, is able to understand how tricky and difficult a situation is for all involved.
Back when I was a German major, I specialized in Austrian literature, and one of the works that lingers in memory is Reigen, a play by Arthur Schnitzler that follows a series of interconnected sexual relationships through the social classes. (The play is also known as La ronde; a film based on the concept, 360, appeared in 2012). I found myself thinking of that play again as I read Jo's novel, but the more I thought, the more I realized the comparison was inadequate. While the play traces a circle, the novel gives that circle three dimensions--it traces a complete, complex world.