Books For Keeps
  • Home
  • Reviews
  • Articles
  • Past Issues
  • Latest Issue
  • Authors and Artists
  • Latest News
  • Search
  • Menu Menu
March 5, 2018/in Fiction 14+ Secondary/Adult /by Angie Hill
BfK Rating:
BfK 229 March 2018
Reviewer: Val Randall
ISBN: 978-1481487733
Price: £10.58
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Genre: Fiction
Age Range: 14+ Secondary/Adult
Length: 340pp
Buy the Book

Starfish

Author: Akemi Dawn Bowman

Kiko Himura is fighting to get out: of herself, her home, her mundane life. She is besieged by her narcissistic, domineering mother, by her anxieties, her mixed heritage and her abusive uncle. Her lifeline is her art, which she hopes will get her into Prism, the prestigious New York art school. When her application fails and Jamie, a dear childhood friend comes back into her life and invites her to stay with him at his parents’ house in California to investigate art schools there, she jumps at the chance. Her uncle’s return to the family home and her mother’s refusal to acknowledge his abuse of her cements the deal.

Once she is in California, events slot into place like an oiled jigsaw: Hiroshi Matsumoto, a famous artist, sees the potential in Kiko’s work and gives her working space in his studio, where he tutors her. His wife offers her a job in the café which she and her daughter run. Kiko and Jamie fall in love-and this accumulation of fortuitous events strains the veracity of the narrative. In Bowman’s defence, these bright stars are clouded by the reality of Kiko’s panic attacks, her inability to believe in herself and her struggle to find her place, ethnically, in the world.

These issues all generate reader sympathy but they are dealt with at rather too much length. Kiko’s every panic attack or moment of anxiety is minutely described, sometimes resulting in a repetitive experience for the reader. In addition, her mother edges too close to caricature in her behaviour towards Kiko and her overweening self-absorption. Bowman is to be commended on her courage in tackling a range of important topics but when loose ends are too neatly tied at the end of the book this dilutes their impact.

Share this entry
  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on WhatsApp
  • Share on Pinterest
  • Share on LinkedIn
  • Share on Reddit
  • Share by Mail
http://booksforkeeps.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/bfklogo.png 0 0 Angie Hill http://booksforkeeps.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/bfklogo.png Angie Hill2018-03-05 13:13:002021-06-08 09:48:41Starfish

Search for a specific review

Author Search

Search







Generic filters




Filter by Member Types


Book Author

BfK 254 May 2022 Download BfK Issue BfK 254 May 2022
Skip to an Issue:

About Us

Launched in 1980, we’ve reviewed hundreds of new children’s books each year and published articles on every aspect of writing for children.

Read More

Follow Us

Latest News

Peter Bently and Steven Lenton named winners of The Children’s Book Award 2022

June 27, 2022

Shortlist for the 2022 SLA Information Book Award

June 23, 2022

2022 Yoto Carnegie Greenaway Winners Announced

June 16, 2022

Contact Us

Books for Keeps,
30 Winton Avenue,
London,
N11 2AT

Telephone: 0780 789 3369

ISSN: 0143-909X (this is our International Standard Serial Number).

© Copyright 2022 - Books For Keeps | Proudly Built by Lemongrass Media - Web Design Buckinghamshire
The Night Flower Brightstorm
Scroll to top