What We Buried by Kate A. Boorman

Abstract

Reviewed by: What We Buried by Kate A. Boorman Karen Coats Boorman, Kate A. What We Buried. Holt, 2019 [320p] Trade ed. ISBN 978-1-250-19167-0 $17.99 E-book ed. ISBN 978-1-250-19168-7 $9.99 Reviewed from galleys R Gr. 9-12 Liv, former child beauty queen and reality-TV star, is suing her parents, while her brother Jory, born with Moebius syndrome that results in partial facial paralysis and articulation difficulties, is jealous that Liv seems to have found yet another way into the limelight. When their parents go missing on the day of the hearing, the two siblings set aside their differences and head off on a road trip to find them. Things get narratively weird as time and memory collapse, blend, and bend in a series of trauma-induced shared hallucinations; past events replay and repeat, allowing brother and sister, who alternate narration, to learn how their perspectives on situations diverged and how misunderstood responses wedged them apart over the years. Jory is the more cerebral of the pair as he slowly recovers his protective instincts toward his little sister, whom he finds more vulnerable and compassionate and less manipulative than he always assumed she was. Plotwise, the time warps keep readers on their toes all the way up to the intense ending, but the emotional reconciliation, which is clearly what’s been at stake here all along, enables a sense of just deserts for all involved. Copyright © 2019 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois