Catch Me if I Fall by Barry Jonsberg

Abstract

Reviewed by: Catch Me if I Fall by Barry Jonsberg April Spisak Jonsberg, Barry Catch Me if I Fall. Groundwood, 2023 [280p] Paper ed. ISBN 9781773068916 $17.99 E-book ed. ISBN 9781773068923 $14.99 Reviewed from digital galleys R Gr. 6-8 Ash and Aiden are ferociously devoted to one another, and nothing has disrupted this twin bond until an accident changes Aiden in irreversible ways. Ash feels like she doesn’t know her newly contemplative brother, who suddenly wants to talk about their extraordinary privilege and how unfair it is when the world, ravaged by climate change, is in ruins all around them. Their parents have noticed the change as well, and now Aiden is going in to his special clinic more often, leaving Ash [End Page 225] alone and bewildered. Ash longs for the comfort of an Aiden who rarely left her side while she also struggles to support this new version of her beloved brother even as she recognizes him less and less. Attentive readers will catch on quite quickly that there are deep layers of secrets in this family, and watching Ash very slowly unpack them, knowing that she is creeping toward life changing revelations, may feel a bit exasperating. Still, Ash is a deeply sympathetic character, particularly as it becomes clear how her secluded life has left her few critical tools to see beyond what her parents have always told her. Australian author Jonsberg offers a glimpse into a grim potential future where human extravagance has caught up to us, and only the very lucky still live comfortably—it is vividly described, hauntingly disconcerting, and uncomfortably probable. The heart of this novel (and the most memorable element), however, is the warm, poignant, and unwavering bond that Aiden and Ash share, offering readers a steadying emotional anchor in Jonsberg’s crumbling world. Copyright © 2023 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois