Jackpot
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3.0 • 1 Rating
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
From the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Dear Martin--which Angie Thomas, the bestselling author of The Hate U Give, called "a must read"--comes a pitch-perfect romance that examines class, privilege, and how a stroke of good luck can change an entire life.
Meet Rico: high school senior and afternoon-shift cashier at the Gas 'n' Go, who after school and work races home to take care of her younger brother. Every. Single. Day. When Rico sells a jackpot-winning lotto ticket, she thinks maybe her luck will finally change, but only if she--with some assistance from her popular and wildly rich classmate Zan--can find the ticket holder who hasn't claimed the prize. But what happens when have and have-nots collide? Will this investigative duo unite...or divide?
Nic Stone, the New York Times bestselling author of Dear Martin and Odd One Out, creates two unforgettable characters in one hard-hitting story about class, money--both too little and too much--and how you make your own luck in the world.
"[A] funny, captivating, and thoughtful tale for young readers about class privilege, class deprivation, and the politics of luck and love." --Ibram X. Kendi, The Atlantic
"A delightful, hilarious romance that digs into issues surrounding class. You'll laugh as much as you sigh while reading this novel about luck, love...and how having a little bit of both is more than enough." --Paste
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
On Christmas Eve, Gas 'n' Go employee Rico Danger, 17, sells two lottery tickets to a woman with memory troubles. After Rico realizes that one of them may be worth $106 million, she begins obsessing about the winning ticket's whereabouts. Rico's mother works too much, mismanages her meager earnings, and refuses to go on Medicaid; Rico handles the family's finances and works double shifts to make rent; and her little brother keeps getting sick. When nobody claims the jackpot after several days, Rico enlists classmate Zan Macklin, a wealthy computer whiz, to help her track down the customer. As they work together, she and Zan careen toward a romance layered with intersectional issues: multiethnic Rico is believably resentful about her family's situation; Zan, part white and part Latinx, is often oblivious to his privilege and high-handed with his wealth; and neither believes they have much choice for their future. Interstitials by objects ("A Word from the Right Ticket") occasionally disrupt the first-person narration, and the primary relationship suffers from an insufficiently characterized male lead. But Stone (Odd One Out) authentically portrays the precarious, terrifying act of living with far less than is needed to survive, and its financial and emotional fallout. Ages 14 up.
