Review by Booklist Review
More than anything, 16-year-old Millie Willard wants to be a working journalist when she graduates. She's currently serving as weatherwoman for her school newspaper, but she's bored and covetous of cover stories. She may get her chance when news arrives that a category 4 hurricane, Florence, is headed for her small town. Her plans to demonstrate her reporter chops by covering the storm are dashed when her mother insists they leave town for its duration. Returning, they find the local library's west wing destroyed by a fire, started, an eavesdropping Millie learns, by a neglectful local woman. Eureka! Here's the opportunity she's been longing for. With no thought for consequences, Millie files a tell-all story, and, as a result, the woman begins receiving death threats. What has Millie done? Though this novel-in-verse story won't win a Pulitzer, it will entertain readers. Wilson makes especially good use of figurative language ("the pale peach wash of morning sun"). Hand to would-be journalists.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 8 Up--Written as a verse novel, this YA debut by an established poet tells the story of Millie Willard, a high school student from a small coastal town in South Carolina. Millie is the frustrated weather reporter for her school's newspaper, dreaming of one day being a journalist who breaks real stories and makes a difference in the world. However, things keep getting in the way: she misses out on the coveted coeditor post; her impetuousness keeps landing her in trouble at school; and her best friend, newspaper astrologist Lola Sun, is distracted by a new romantic relationship with transgender sports reporter Todd. After Hurricane Florence batters her town, Millie overhears a confidential conversation between her mother and the deputy sheriff and uses this information to write an exposé. The article makes Millie a social media celebrity and gets the attention of her idol, newscaster Felicia Fitz, who wants to use the story to generate publicity for her station. Now, as Millie risks alienating her friends and family, she's forced to consider whether she's really making a difference, or just making a stir. This earnest novel raises timely questions about the intersection between journalism and activism and may lead readers to consider the ways they can effect change in their communities. It also includes interesting content about astrology, crystal healing, and vegan cookery, with these subjects underpinning the author's use of imagery. However, at times the verse is overwritten and distracts from, rather than deepens, the story. VERDICT Primarily recommended for libraries seeking to expand their YA verse novel collections.--Leonie Jordan
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
An aspiring reporter reveals a scandal after a hurricane hits her community. High school junior Millie Willard desperately wants to be the next editor of her school's paper, The Bloom, and takes every opportunity to show she's worthy of being chosen. When Hurricane Florence comes through her small town of Magnolia, South Carolina, an opportunity arises. Millie overhears a conversation between her mother and her cousin, who's deputy sheriff, during which he reveals the cause of the fire in the local library that was serving as a temporary shelter for people and their pets: It broke out accidentally after a librarian plugged in an electric kettle and went outside for a cigarette break. Millie seizes her chance, not considering the impact on the subject of her exposé. Her story in The Bloom goes viral and is picked up by Felicia Fitz, local news anchor and Millie's hero. Soon the librarian starts getting threats, she's derided on social media, and her property is vandalized. The free verse makes the hurricane's impact feel visceral, and Millie's motivations and determination come across as authentic. Millie feels the strain of the fallout of publishing the story, but her internal ethics don't kick in immediately: She's ultimately able to rectify the situation but experiences few consequences and is forgiven in a way that doesn't feel wholly earned. Main characters are cued White. An interesting examination of journalistic integrity that doesn't hit all its beats. (Verse fiction. 13-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
