I Will Save You by Matt de la Peña

Kidd is determined to save Olivia, the girl he has no business falling in love with because she is wealthy, cultured and well-read; things Kidd definitely is not.  Yet fall in love he does.  And Olivia responds to his affection.  But Devon who is Kidd’s malevolent and mysterious friend from the shelter home seems determined to hurt Olivia.  In order to save Olivia Kidd must destroy Devon.

De la Peña, as he did in We Were Here and Mexican White Boy, explores the psyche of a troubled Latino teen grappling with the aftermath of a horrific murder/suicide that leaves him orphaned and fearful of the abusive violence of his father and the murderous desperation of his mother.  He takes more risks here with a narrative in which Kidd’s story is told through dreams, a diary, and his recollections, each of which are seeded with enough clues for the reader to suspect that not everything Kidd is telling us is real.  With his usual pitch-perfect dialogue De la Peña delivers another story that will appeal to teens who enjoy realistic fiction about troubled youth.  John Sexton, WLS.

 

Advertisement