The Situation: It is the summer of 1996, and 16 year-old Frankie Budge is escaping the heat by hanging out at the local pool where she meets Zeke. He seems nice enough, and also just as awkward as she is, and the two of them strike up an unlikely friendship that makes sense in a weird way. She likes to write, and he likes to draw, and together they come up with an idea to create something together...her the words, him the picture. The result is a poster that, with the help of an old copier that Frankie's older, chaotic triplet brothers had stolen, they are able to make copies of and post all around Coalfield. Everywhere the townspeople go, they are greeted with the strange saying "The edge is a shantytown filled with gold seekers. We are fugitives, and the law is skinny with hunger for us."
The Problem: Naturally, people are confused. And then curious. But things quickly spiral out of control when a few ridiculous rumors and theories as to the poster's origin begin to circulate, leading to fear and panic. Soon, Frankie and Zeke are not the only ones making copies of the posters and putting them up. Eventually, the image has gone beyond Coalfield, Tennessee and is making headlines across the country. Events occur that neither Frankie nor Zeke could have predicted, and their effects will follow Frankie well into adulthood. She has managed to keep what happened that summer all to herself, until a journalist calls her, asserting that they know she was the source of the poster. Now the well-crafted life Frankie built is in danger of falling apart.
Genre, Themes, History: This novel is fiction, and is set largely in Coalfield, Tennessee during the summer of 1996. Sixteen year-old Frankie lives with her mother and her older triplet brothers, with her dad having moved on with his new wife and child. Zeke is also without his father, at least for the summer, due to the revelation that he has been cheating on his mom, giving him something else in common with Frankie. The poster that the two of them created leads to the kind of series of events that people would maybe read about later in a Mental Floss article. It is also a depiction of the power of art, as well as the power of mass panic, and how sometimes, obsessions can be hard to shake, even when they are not good for us, and especially if we feel like they are all we have.
My Verdict: This is an easy and fascinating read, and since it is just under 250 pages, it is worth picking up and enjoying the brief but often wild ride. I love the idea of two teenagers creating something strange but uniquely them out of boredom on a Tennessee summer day, and then posting it around their small town - at the gas stations, movie theater, school, office buildings, you name it. And seeing how different people view the poster and react to it is beyond interesting. This is the kind of book I could see some of my instructors in college using as an illustration of the power of art, and comparing the events that unfold with similar events in history. And seeing the long-term effects of everything on Frankie, and how she feels about that summer 20 years later, definitely led me to consider what past events I feel are still a part of me, even decades later.
Favorite Moment: There is a point when the town's curiosity officially switches to panic, and it is depicted so well and explains just how easily a small and easily contained situation can lead to chaos.
Favorite Character: Frankie's mom is a hard-working single mother doing her best with a set of incredibly rowdy triplet boys, and awkward and somewhat withdrawn Frankie. With everything she has to deal with, she is the real hero of this story.
Recommended Reading: Gabrielle Zevin's Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow also involves two younger people joining forces to create something. And I want to mention an episode of Daria (yes, the MTV cartoon show from the 1990s) called "Arts 'n' Crass" that deals with an image with a message that ends up causing problems for the creators.
No comments:
Post a Comment