Keesha's House
Author(s): Helen Frost
An unforgettable narrative collage told in poems
Keesha has found a safe place to live, and other kids gravitate to her house when they just can't make it on their own. They are Stephie – pregnant, trying to make the right decisions for herself and those she cares about; Jason – Stephie's boyfriend, torn between his responsibility to Stephie and the baby and the promise of a college basketball career; Dontay – in foster care while his parents are in prison, feeling unwanted both inside and outside the system; Carmen – arrested on a DUI charge, waiting in a juvenile detention center for a judge to hear her case; Harris – disowned by his father after disclosing that he's gay, living in his car, and taking care of himself; Katie – angry at her mother's loyalty to an abusive stepfather, losing herself in long hours of work and school.
Stretching the boundaries of traditional poetic forms – sestinas and sonnets – Helen Frost's extraordinary debut novel for young adults weaves together the stories of these seven teenagers as they courageously struggle to hold their lives together and overcome their difficulties.
Keesha's House is a 2004 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.
Review(s):
“Frost has taken the poem-story to a new level with well-crafted sestinas and sonnets, leading readers into the souls and psyches of her teen protagonists . . . engaging.” —School Library Journal, Starred Review
“Spare, eloquent, and elegantly concise.” —VOYA
“This moving first novel tells the story in a series of dramatic monologues that are personal, poetic, and immediate.” —Booklist
“Impressive.” —Kirkus Reviews
“Making the most of the poetic forms, the author breathes life into these teens and their stories, resulting in a thoughtfully composed and ultimately touching book.” —Publishers Weekly
Long-listed Oklahoma Sequoyah YA Book Award ML, American Library Association Popular Paperbacks for Young Readers, Long-listed ALA Best Books for Young Adults, Winner NYPL Books for the Teen Age, Long-listed IN Eugene & Marilyn Glick IN Authors (2011), Long-listed South Carolina Children's Book Award ML, Books for the Teen Age, New York Public Library, South Carolina Children's Book Award Master List, American Library Association Best Books for Young Adults, Oklahoma Sequoyah Young Adult Book Award Master List, Long-listed Bank Street Best Children's Book of the Year, Commended Michael L. Printz Award - Honor, Long-listed Missouri Gateway Readers Award Master List, Long-listed ALA Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults
ISBN: 9780312641276