98. Unsinkable Cayenne. Jessica Vitalis. 2024. [October 29] 304 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars] [verse novel, historical fiction, realistic fiction, mg fiction, coming of age]
First sentence: I don't know what the owners
have against trees
but I wish they'd plant a few
between their squished sites.
Premise/plot: Cayenne has spent most of her life living in a van with her family. Her parents like the free-spirited, nomadic, no roots lifestyle). But life in the van is cramped with five people. (She has twin [younger] siblings.] But her father has recently taken a job in a small Montana town. Cayenne wants to a) fit in, b) fit in, c) fit in. She knows that this will take a LOT of hard work since she'll need to change everything about herself. It will take concealing her unusual past and her family's poverty. Will Cayenne make friends? make the right sort of friends? Can she fit in with the "normal" crowd?
This book is full of struggles, struggles, and more struggles. Yet it isn't without its bright moments of hope and joy.
It is set in the fall of 1985. The recent discovery of the wreck of the Titanic is a hot topic in her history class. Though perhaps it is the teacher who is most thrilled.
This verse novel is sprinkled with PLENTY of eighties details. However I am not convinced that all the eighties details fit in for the fall of 1985. I have no proof either way.
My thoughts: I really LOVED this one. Perhaps it didn't have to be written in verse. However, this coming of age novel has so much heart. I really loved spending time with these characters.
The ending IS not tied in bows. This is probably for the best.
© 2024 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
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