<i>Fall from Grace</i> (review)
2012; Johns Hopkins University Press; Volume: 65; Issue: 10 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1353/bcc.2012.0477
ISSN1558-6766
Autores ResumoReviewed by: Fall from Grace Karen Coats Benoit, Charles . Fall from Grace. HarperTeen, 2012. 304p. ISBN 978-0-06-194707-0 $17.99. Reviewed from galleys R Gr. 7-10. Sawyer simply drifts in the wake of plans his parents and his girlfriend made for him. He goes to the job his dad got for him, participates in the service work and extracurriculars his parents have chosen, and socializes only with his girlfriend and her friends. His parents have even picked his college, finished his applications for him, and chosen his profession—insurance actuary. His protests to all of this are weak and ineffectual. It's no surprise, then, that when he meets Grace, a girl from the wrong side of town who's looking for some illicit and perhaps illegal fun, he's more than ready to be pulled into her orbit. Grace likes to plan capers, making the simple complicated. He helps her steal some notes from a team rival in Model United Nations, she helps him cheat on a test, and then things get serious, as she decides that she wants to become a famous art thief. He objects, weakly as usual, but eventually helps her pull off a couple of heists until they get caught, and he finds out some disturbing secrets about Grace. While many readers will gravitate toward [End Page 499] the caper quality of the plot that sometimes borders on slapstick, the real hook here is the careful depiction of Sawyer's character. A conscientious, kind-hearted, ordinary guy, he's completely overwhelmed by the more forceful natures of those around him; even when he feels the freedom that comes from breaking the law with Grace, attentive readers will conclude that her manipulation of him is more of the same that he's getting from everyone else. A quiet despair thus emerges as a subtle undertone that dominates the book, and it remains unrelieved in the end in this story that could be viewed as a portrait of Walter Mitty as a young man. Copyright © 2012 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois
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