Language: R (17 swears, 2 “f”); Mature Content: R (frequent use of drugs and alcohol by minors, body dysmorphia, several references to sexuality through off-color jokes); Violence: R (intense and persistent physical, sexual, and verbal violence - e.g. abuse from family, teenagers physically fighting, repeated sexual harassment of the protagonist, and repeated homophobic slurs)
BUYING ADVISORY: HS - OPTIONAL
AUDIENCE APPEAL: LOW
Claire is a queer (maybe gender neutral?) teen in 1980s New York. They are surviving with a couple of good friends, and a beer. Or two, or three, or more. However, when Claire's drinking gets out of hand, they are court-ordered into rehab. There, with the help of a patient counselor named Charlie, Claire begins the long hard road to recovery and healing their emotional, physical, and mental trauma.
This was a hard book to read in a lot of ways. One, the content was hard. The language, mature content and violence was frequent and rough. It was also hard watching teens unpack their traumas and learn to try to (or not) deal with their addictions. Two, the art was sometimes difficult to read. At times, it was both garish, and garbled, but also poignant in some places. Because it is rated R in every category, it would be difficult to find a place for it in a classroom library, even though I think there would be some students that would really connect with and benefit from Claire’s story.
Reviewer: Kiera Beddes, #bookswithbeddes
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