Book list
From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.
Devastated after his beloved older brother, T.J., is killed on active duty in Iraq, Matt, 17, combs through T.J.'s personal items sent home by the army. After finding passionate love letters from someone called Celia, Matt travels to find her in Madison, where he is shocked to discover his brother's secret. Some of the characters are not fully developed. Matt's bullying father is completely demonic as he pushes Matt to be a man, not a fairy. In contrast, Matt's sexy girlfriend, Shauna, is too perfectly supportive and understanding. But Matt's first-person, present-tense narrative, with its fast, contemporary dialogue, will grab readers right from the opening scene, where enraged Matt gets in trouble at school for pummeling a self-righteous antiwar bully. At the core is the brothers' close bond, and most moving is Matt's coming to terms with his own prejudice and his guilt and anguish about T.J.: He never told me what was in his head. . . . And I didn't ask. --Rochman, Hazel Copyright 2010 Booklist
School Library Journal
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Gr 9 Up-Still angry and hurting from his brother's death in Iraq, Matt Foster goes through TJ's personal effects, reads love letters from someone in Madison, WI, and drives there, only to discover that the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy extended to his family as well. Compelling and vividly told. Audio version available from Brilliance Audio. (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
School Library Journal
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Gr 10 Up-In this gripping debut novel that doesn't pull punches, Matt, 17, is still reeling from the death of his brother, T.J., who was killed while serving in Iraq. He's getting into fights at school, his grades are falling, and he's becoming distant with his friend and crush, Shauna. When three trunks of T.J.'s belongings arrive on his doorstep, Matt discovers his brother's long-time relationship with Celia Carson by reading through stacks of letters. At the bottom of the trunk, still sealed and addressed in T.J.'s handwriting, is the last letter his brother wrote to Celia, but never got to send. An impromptu road trip from Pennsylvania to hand deliver the letter sounds like a great escape from final exams and his volatile and violent father. However, in Wisconsin, Matt discovers a side to his brother he never knew: T.J. was gay and had a long-term relationship with Celia's brother. Could this be the incentive Matt needs to break away from his father's blind insistence that he pursue a future in the military? Kokie beautifully crafts a story about the troubled relationships between an emotionally stunted father and his two sons. Both T.J. and Matt are forced to deal with their own pain in secret. A strong choice for reluctant readers and lovers of realistic fiction alike.-Richelle Roth, Boone County Public Library, KY (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
School Library Journal
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Gr 9 Up-Matt has had a rough time coping since his brother's death in Iraq left him alone with his abusive father. When his father tries to keep him from looking through his brother's personal effects, Matt can no longer just do as he's told. Convinced that his things will give Matt insight into TJ's "real" life, Matt secretly defies his father and discovers that his brother had a secret significant other in Wisconsin. Needing to deliver TJ's final unmailed letter, Matt heads for Madison to seek out C, only to find that there was even more to TJ's secret than he'd thought. Matt must choose a path for his own future. Will he follow in his father's footsteps or will he defy him and accept who TJ truly was. Kokie's stellar debut novel (Candlewick, 2012) is narrated by Nick Podehl who easily captures an unsure teenager's emotional struggle. As Matt strives to find his own self-worth and uncover his brother's TJ's secrets, Podehl draws listeners in and keeps them invested in Matt's story. He fluidly evokes the wide gamut of emotions that Matt experiences, while still maintaining a sense of underlying grief throughout. The expert narration coupled with a powerful and heartfelt story make this audiobook a must have for all high school and public library collections.-Jessica Miller, West Springfield Public Library, MA (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
"Embrace the suck," is Matt Foster's older brother T.J.'s advice to him, and he's got a whole lot of suck to embrace. Not only did T.J. leave Matt with their vicious, alcoholic father--their bipolar mother died years ago--when he enlisted and then deployed to the Middle East, now he is dead. Their father resolutely refuses to talk about T.J., and he's hidden the small bag of stuff the "uniforms" brought the Fosters when they notified them of T.J'.s death. Under suspension for fighting--and threat of "so help me" if he doesn't get his ass back in gear--Matt finds an unexpected opportunity when more uniforms drop off his brother's remaining personal effects: trunks containing photographs of a beautiful black woman and her family and often-steamy letters from "C." With help from his lifelong friend Shauna, he plots an escape to Madison, Wisc., where he hopes to connect with his brother's memory. Matt tells his tale in an almost excruciatingly deliberate present-tense narration; Kokie grounds readers so thoroughly in Matt's misery that they will be as itchy to escape the brutal emptiness of life with his father as he is. Realistically, though the inevitable revelation and resolution bring peace to Matt, they do not heal his father; readers will just have to hope he can make it through. A fine addition to the literature of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. (Historical fiction. 14 up)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.