Inconsistent
Alex Akre
Lately I've been in several conversations discussing the lack of sensitivity of
today's youth. Alex Akre's first novel indicates that some of those
conversations need to be re-visited. When I received the book it was
described as a Young Adult / Coming of Age novel. After reading it I'm not
sure what genre it fits so I'd like to suggest a new one - Poetic Dream Rant.
Macy is a teenage girl living with an abusive father. Her mother can't break
the chains from the beast so Macy runs away and becomes Meadow "a
promise of greener pastures." Meadow and Macy are polar opposites on the
conformity spectrum. Meadow looks back at Macy as one of the girls in her
old high school who are all about starring on social media, having the right
boyfriend and bullying the girls who don't quite live up to the standards
they've set.
When Meadow goes to a new high school she breaks free from conformity.
The first thing she does is befriend Dante, a gay drug dealer. They live
together with Liam, Dante's boyfriend, in a motel room financed by drug
deals and Liam's family. The moralist might raise an eyebrow, but these kids
want to make a better world than what is being left to them. Teenagers on a
journey reminiscent of Kerouac's "On the Road" they befriend the homeless
in reaction to the hard-boiled ignorance of the adult world that doesn't
consider the humanity of the downtrodden.
Meadow falls in love with her classmate Richmond and the trio becomes a
quartet but the music is flawed. Richmond can't handle the truth as Meadow
and her friends define it. When the trio gets back together their harmony is
impossible to recapture.
The writing in this book is awesome for the most part. It is even more
awesome that Ms. Aker wrote this novel at the age of 16. It is not an easy
read (Aker admits to breaking some rules and rambling) but her insights are
profound and based on grown-up perceptions rare enough for adults, much
less adolescents.
As a writer I envy Alex Aker's talent. As a reviewer I welcome a potential
superstar to the literary world.
5+ Stars
Bill Snyder
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