The Lonely

Gr 10 Up—Easter Deetz has a huge chip on her shoulder about the failures of her family, particularly those of her parents, who she refers to as "The Mother" and "The Father." It's these dire circumstances that culminate in an event that traumatized Easter can only refer to as "The Terrible Thing," which sends her off to the woods. Easter becomes trapped under a boulder and begins to bleed out and her fragile psyche starts to shatter. As her life slips away and dark things encroach from the woods, the teen narrates the story of her losses and loves, most of which seem to radiate around her parents and her sister Julia. Or is this really happening at all? Easter is the quintessential unreliable narrator and readers are left wondering what elements of her story they can believe. Debut author Hogarth can't quite pull off this unique premise. The novel is written using highly stylized prose that often leaves readers unclear on what is reality. The novel's language, while strong and vivid, isn't enough to sustain the wobbliness of this narrative decision. These weaknesses are not helped by the fact that it more than occasionally veers into grotesquerie. The author's writing and willingness to take narrative risks is promising for future books, but The Lonely doesn't quite come together. Recommended as an additional purchase for larger libraries looking to expand their young adult horror collections.—Angie Manfredi, Los Alamos County Library System, NM