Now You Say Yes
by Bill Harley (Author)
Award-winning author and storyteller Bill Harley returns with an unforgettable middle grade novel about two orphaned siblings on a cross-country journey in search of their place in the world.
"I rooted for outcast-misfit protagonists Mari and Conor every mile and (every single page!) of their intimate and epic, grief-fueled road trip. Bill Harley's Now You Say Yes reminds us that acts of kindness--big and small--make all the difference." --Patrick Flores-Scott, award-winning author of Jumped In and American Road Trip
When her mother dies, fifteen-year-old Mari and is desperate to avoid being caught up in the foster system. Again. And to complicate matters, she is now the only one who can take care of her super-smart and on-the-spectrum nine-year-old stepbrother, Conor. Is there anyone Mari can trust to help them?
Certainly not her mother's current boyfriend, Dennis. Not the doctors or her teachers, who would be obliged to call in social services. So in a desperate move, Mari takes Conor and sets out to find their estranged grandmother, hoping to throw themselves at the mercy of the only person who might take them in. On their way to New England, the duo experiences the snarls of LA traffic, the backroads of the Midwest, and a monumental stop in Missouri where they witness the solar eclipse, an event with which Conor is obsessed. Mari also learns about the inner workings of her stepbrother's mind and about her connections to him and to the world...and maybe even a little about her own place in it. A beautiful exploration of identity and family, this heartwarming and engaging middle grade novel comes from renowned storyteller and two-time Grammy Award winner Bill Harley.
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Kirkus Reviews
Publishers Weekly
Following the sudden death of her adoptive mother, former foster child Mari, 15, hatches a plan to drive across the country with her nine-year-old brother Conor, who is on the autism spectrum. Determined not to reenter "the System" or be separated from Conor, she picks up their mother's car and the family's camping equipment, planning to drive from Los Angeles to their estranged grandmother's home in Massachusetts--though she's unsure whether Nana will forgive her for a long-ago transgression, the details of which slowly unfold. To get Conor, who is interested in astronomy, onboard with the trip, she promises him that they can stop to view a solar eclipse. Along the way, the cued-white kids encounter external obstacles--from dwindling cash to misplaced car keys--and sweet moments ("Conor splashing in the water, singing to the Gulls and the B-52's"). As Mari battles feelings of alienation and attempts to make adult decisions, Conor memorizes the map and curls up in a dog crate ("a small safe place") for comfort. Though Mari doesn't always speak sensitively about her brother's disorder, this poetically written and economically plotted hero's journey by Harley (the Charlie Bumpers series) makes a heartwarming, hopeful case for self-forgiveness and second chances. Ages 10-14. (Aug.)
Copyright 2021 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.Harley was called the Mark Twain of contemporary children's music by Entertainment Weekly. He lives in Massachusetts.
JUV039020 - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes | Adolescence
JUV039130 - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes | Runaways
United States
Orphans
Bildungsromans
Automobile travel
Total solar eclipses
