Killing Time in Crystal City
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- $8.99
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- $8.99
Publisher Description
A teen runs away from his broken life and invents a new one in this “absorbing and satisfying” (Booklist) adventure from Printz Honor winner and National Book Award finalist Chris Lynch.
Crystal City called for him, and Kevin answered. And why wouldn’t he? His relationship with his father is broken—as is his arm. With barely anyone to miss him or care if he’s gone, it seemed like the perfect time for Kevin to run away to his estranged uncle and create an entirely new identity. New name. New attitude. New friends. Maybe even a new girl.
From the first moment of adventure, Kevin’s life takes a turn for the exciting. Making friends seems easy with his new persona, especially when a group of homeless beach bums instantly includes him in their crew. But do they like the real Kevin, or the guy he’s pretending to be? And will this new lifestyle help Kevin escape from the misery of his former life—or will it drag him right back into the reasons he left home?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Seventeen-year-old runaway Kevin arrives in Crystal City with little more than a cast on his arm, the nickname Kiki Vandeweghe (after the former NBA star), and the address for his estranged uncle Sydney, the family's black sheep. Asked how he got the cast by fellow bus passenger Stacey (who has a cast of her own), Kevin explains, "My Dad did it," though the truth is less cut and dry, readers gradually learn. After Kevin arrives in the beach town, he moves in with his uncle (who describes his work fencing stolen luxury goods as a "perfectly reasonable redistribution of wealth... and a victimless crime. Like necrophilia") and spends time with Stacey and another transient Molly, who has turned to prostitution to get by. Lynch (Little Blue Lies) parcels out details about Kevin father, his best friend, and why he left home through conversations, emails, and flashbacks, maintaining suspense. But it's Kevin's unshakable awkwardness (including a humiliating tendency to blush at Stacey's every minor provocation), some dark twists, and Lynch's proficiency for zingy banter that make this story about feeling like an outsider among outsiders leave a lasting impression. Ages 12 up.
