Hold Tight, Don't Let Go: A Novel of Haiti

A superb read and quite unique. Wagner is a beautiful writer and inhabits her main character, Magdalie, with a sureness and compassion that doesn't suffer from any pity or condescension. Wagner is an anthropologist who was actually in Haiti (and buried for a day) during the earthquake. But (and?) she's also a superb and emotionally connected writer, who charts the pop culture and particular life-ways of poor Haitians (and aid workers and journos) with a sure and sometimes wryly funny hand. People looking for diversity in YA fiction need to read this book!

Magdalie is a great character -- tough, gentle, lost, loving, but determined to do something for herself even in the midst of post-earthquake chaos. After her half-sister and best show more friend leaves for the US, she has to figure out a way to manage and get out of her poverty in the refugee camps. A rather sheltered 17-year-old she thinks she might have found a friend in Jimmy, a young man she knows. The scene is merciless and beautifully drawn as Magdalie slowly realizes that his offer of help comes with a sexual price tag:

His zozo is hard and swollen and hot against me; I can feel it through his jeans. All my mind can come up with is a bunch of words with little thought attached to them: Heat. Closeness. Zozo. Cologne. Sweat. Dim grey sunlight. No emotion or thought, only panic. Run. Run. Run.

Wagner brings in no saviors or deus ex machina devices to rescue her heroine. The conclusion is both satisfying and open, since Magdalie's wish -- to go back to school -- is realized even as we know the obstacles she will continue to face in modern Haiti are considerable. But if anyone is going to build a better Haiti in the future, it's going to be girls like Magdalie.

show less

HOLD TIGHT, DON’T LET GO by Laura Rose Wagner is an unforgettable young adult novel set in Port-au-Prince Haiti during and after the devastating 2010 earthquake.

The story begins with a chilling description of the Haiti earthquake through the eyes of a fifteen-year-old girl named Magdalie. As she searches through the rubble of her home, the stark aftermath of her collapsed world soon becomes clear. The chapters are named with months and years beginning with the earthquake on January 12, 2010 through 2011. The story concludes in January 2020, ten years after the disaster.

Wagner does a masterful job describing life for Magdalie including her frustration, resourcefulness, and hope. The author was working on an ethnographic study when she show more experienced the 2010 Haiti earthquake. Her experiences led to this compelling and realistic portrayal of Haitian culture.

While Magdalie’s experience with a vodou priestess and the funeral of her Manman may seem alien to readers, teens will empathize with her frustrations about lack of cell phone access and feelings of jealousy when her cousin leaves for America.

This beautifully written coming-of-age work of historical fiction would serve as an excellent focal point for a discussion of the human-impact of natural disasters. Consider building a literature circle containing books related to other recent disasters such as Hurricane Katrina.

For background information, go to Encyclopedia Britannica at http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1659695/Haiti-earthquake-of-2010. Wikipedia also has an excellent article about the 2010 Haiti earthquake that provides background information for readers. Go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_Haiti_earthquake.

Time Magazine also has an excellent series of articles. Go to http://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/0,28757,1953379,00.html.

Based on ARC NetGalley show less

RGG: Gritty story of a seventeen-year-old's re-building of her life after the 2010 Haitian Earthquake. The experiences and emotions described are appropriate to the age of the main character. The use of creole is authentic and helps establish the mood. And even though, this is an historical event, the story feels contemporary. Interest Level: YA.

RGG: Gritty story of a seventeen-year-old's re-building of her life after the 2010 Haitian Earthquake. The experiences and emotions described are appropriate to the age of the main character. The use of creole is authentic and helps establish the mood. And even though, this is an historical event, the story feels contemporary. Interest Level: YA.

RGG: Gritty story of a seventeen-year-old's re-building of her life after the 2010 Haitian Earthquake. The experiences and emotions described are appropriate to the age of the main character. The use of creole is authentic and helps establish the mood. And even though, this is an historical event, the story feels contemporary. Interest Level: YA.

Two teenage cousins, that are raised as sisters, survive the 2010 earthquake in Haiti. The girls find themselves in a refugee camp where life changes drastically. Nadine's father, who lives in Miami, sends for her. The story is about never forgetting and finding your true self.

The ending was very unnecessary. WTF?