Copyright Date:
2019
Edition Date:
2019
Release Date:
06/15/19
Pages:
184 pages
ISBN:
1-945820-32-2
ISBN 13:
978-1-945820-32-8
Dewey:
Fic
Dimensions:
23 cm.
Subject Heading:
Teenagers. Comic books, strips, etc. Juvenile fiction.
College students. Comic books, strips, etc. Juvenile fiction.
Missing persons. Comic books, strips, etc. Juvenile fiction.
Teenagers. Comic books, strips, etc. Fiction.
College students. Comic books, strips, etc. Fiction.
Missing persons. Comic books, strips, etc. Fiction.
Language:
English
Reviews:
Kirkus Reviews
A convoluted graphic novel thriller about a teen discovering the dark and twisted secrets of her childhood.Beck, a brown-skinned young woman with straight black hair, is en route by car with her father to begin her first year at the University of Chicago. The excitement of leaving her isolated home-school environment is abruptly derailed when a routine stop at a gas station turns fatal. Beck flees, and a concerned woman drives her into the city, but urban Chicago is bewildering for Beck, who is accustomed to rural living. This chance encounter with a seemingly random stranger later proves pivotal when Beck learns about mysterious circumstances from her past. An innocuous stuffed toy holds clues to Beck's deep family secret and sets off a chain of events that forces two men in her life to confront one another. Themes of social media and surveillance, complicated familial relationships, and so much more are overshadowed by hasty plot twists, lackluster characterization, and a polarizing conclusion. The dark vector-style illustrations, heavy with deep crimson and indigo, are reminiscent of Faith Erin Hicks. Variations in the panels add visual interest. The cast is ethnically diverse.The disturbing and rushed ending may baffle some readers while opening up discussion for others. (Graphic fiction. 12-14)
A Junior Library Guild Selection "Twists and turns abound in Lisa Naffziger's teen suspense thriller." -- FOREWORD Beck is on her way to college, thrilled at the possibilities of the next exciting chapter, barely holding it in as she clutches her childhood favorite toy in the family car with her loving dad behind the wheel. And that's where Beck's shared experience with the rest of her freshman class abruptly ends and the tangled mysteries of her astonishing life start to unravel. Homeschooled and raised in isolation by the jumpy, over-protective Gill, Beck isn't allowed online or out of the house alone. Even a quick pit stop on their quiet family road trip takes some negotiation before they finally pull into a remote gas station, where their cautiously stable peace is jolted by gunfire. Beck emerges from the restroom to find her father gone and a dead body on the floor. Beck is in the world now, and she's beyond not ready for it. A taut suspense thriller that challenges our perceptions of family and identity, MINUS is a coming-of-age tale where a teen's new discoveries might be best kept in the shadows.