School Library Journal Review:
Gr 8-10?Excited by the idea that her best friend, Callum McGregor, will be going to her school, 13-year-old Persephone Hadley, daughter of a racist politician, is too young and too privileged to realize that friendships between naughts, like Callum, the son of her mother\’s former maid, and Crosses, like herself, are impossible in her segregated society. In this alternate world, recognizably English but with a twist, conditions for the pale-skinned naughts have improved little since the days of slavery; the dark-skinned Crosses have the money and power. Caught up in the hostility surrounding the school\’s integration, Sephy attempts to be a public friend and makes things worse. Readers familiar with racial issues in this country will see familiar patterns as Callum struggles with the hostility of his family as well as those outside. But in this world, the second-class citizens have turned to terrorism. Callum\’s older brother, denied schooling, has joined the Liberation Army. Caught up in escalating violence, Callum\’s family disintegrates, and there seems little for him to do but go the terrorist route as well. Over the years, Callum and Sephy drift apart, but their love remains. The teens take turns telling their story, and the parallels with Romeo and Juliet are clear. Some awkwardness in writing does not detract from the drama and suspense. The obvious message and wooden characterization will not diminish some teens\’ enthusiasm for this story of impossible love, which won several favorite-book awards in England where it was first published in 2001.?Kathleen Isaacs, formerly at Edmund Burke School, Washington, DC Copyright ? Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.