ALA Booklist (Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 CST 2019)

As she did in Forever, or a Long, Long Time? (2017), Carter examines how questions about family origins affect a child's life. Here that child is Alma, 12, who's always been told her Portuguese father, Jorge, is dead. So Alma, aided by her friend Julia, spends lots of time in graveyards, looking for his headstone. Then, without warning, Alma's mom, Mercy, sells everything and moves them to Portugal. Suddenly, Alma has a new family, including a cousin, Leonor, who shocks her with the news that Jorge is not dead t he has less to offer Alma emotionally than she's dreamed. Some things work well here: Alma's realistic fury about being lied to her entire life; the tangled relationship with Mercy's now-divorced husband, Alma's stepfather, who wanted to adopt Alma; and Alma's relationship with Julia, who has her own parental angst. But Mercy's quixotic actions sometimes stretch credulity, and there's occasional repetition. Still, the story moves quickly, and readers will eagerly read to the last page to learn how the knotty problems are untangled.

Kirkus Reviews

Alma has never known her father, but she has countless questions for him.Ever since she was 4, Alma, now 12, has known her father was Portuguese and that he died shortly after her birth. That's it. Her mother, Mercy, refuses to tell her anything else. The questions she'd like to ask him find their ways to scraps of paper. Alma then takes these queries to various cemeteries, where she buries them near headstones, hoping her father will somehow answer her. Mercy is equally closemouthed when Alma's stepfather abruptly moves out, crushing her. Then her mother quite suddenly announces that they are moving to be near Alma's grandmother. It isn't until they are at the airport that Alma discerns that her mother is taking her to Portugal, where she meets her avo and prima, a grandmother and cousin she didn't even know existed. She begins to appreciate Lisbon, with its labyrinthine streets and delicious food, but she's still not free of the longing to know her father. With Alma's story, Carter explores both the harm done by concealing truth from others and the emotional necessity of knowing that truth, even when it's hard. Crafted from vulnerable and introspective prose, Alma ultimately learns that expectation and fantasy are debilitating substitutes for the truth. Alma and her family are white.An absorbing tale that illustrates that knowing one's ancestry can be an avenue to self-discovery. (Fiction. 8-12)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

This poignant novel explores the destructive power of secrets. Thoughtful 12-year-old narrator Alma roils with questions for her avoidant mother, Mercy, about her Portuguese father, whose tomb Alma looks for in local Pittsburgh graveyards, and about Mercy-s unexplained recent split from Alma-s stepdad, Adam. Carter (Forever, or a Long, Long Time) effectively heightens the tension when Alma learns on the first day of school that she-s not registered for class; then, days later, that they-re moving; and finally, at the airport, that they-re headed to Lisbon. The city-s romantic charm, the lure of meeting her father-s family, and the toxicity of secrets propel Alma to explore on her own as she searches for more information about her dad. For much of the narrative, Alma-s mother seems absent and unknowable beyond her absurd concealments, but as Adam encourages Alma during phone calls to find answers, Mercy-s story and sacrifices come into focus. A compelling portrait of family and all its flaws, and the freeing power of the truth. Ages 8-12. (Mar.)