Suze Tamaki always seems to be getting herself into trouble, a result of feeling bored with school and her life in general. When an English teacher coaxes her into an honors class, Suze learns what it's like to finally be challenged. However, her life dramatically changes when her mother, Caroline, shows up unannounced after a 10-year absence and wants to pick up where she left off. Dad's not thrilled, and big sister Tracie won't allow it. In fact, she's adamant that the two stick to the pact they'd made years before: to never speak to Caroline. Ever. But Suze is conflicted and wants to give her mother a chance. Anthony, who writes YA novels under the name J. M. Kelly, has created an engaging narrator bound to resonate with readers. Suze is half Anglo, half Japanese, and a Canadian tween through and through. Her missteps, hesitations, and assumptions are universal, and when she faces her toughest challenges, she takes messy but brave leaps that leave her a little more mature than the day before.

Grade-seven student Suze Tamaki decides whether or not to reconnect with her 10-years-absent mother. Suze is comfortable: she has her father and older sister at home and her apathy at school. That is, until she comes home to find her absentee mother, Caroline. Suze's sister, Tracie, tries to stop Suze from spending time with Caroline by invoking a pact they signed years before, causing strain between the sisters. While Suze struggles with feelings of abandonment, she decides to give her mother another chance, a choice made with such understanding that it pushes credulity. However, Suze's voice shines with authenticity, which balances her sometimes unbelievable decisions. Meanwhile, at school, Suze's English teacher sees through her likable antihero persona and slyly partners her with a model-student friend for a special project. Surprisingly, Suze finds she wants to do well, which will win her a permanent place in Honors English. Eventually, things with Caroline, Tracie, and school come to a head, but all ends well without resolving too neatly. Suze, half Japanese-Canadian and half Anglo-Canadian, is disconnected from her Japanese heritage, which allows the narrative to skirt issues that sometimes come with being biracial and a minority. Also unfortunate are the digs at A.J., Suze's strong, mother-figure aunt, whose weight is overemphasized. A solid story that explores themes of family, abandonment, and belonging. (Fiction. 10-14)