Valley Girls

February 1, 2018

Gr 10 Up-Rilla is sent to Yosemite to live with her park ranger older sister after running into some trouble back home in West Virginia. Looking to overcome her party girl reputation but struggling to find herself, Rilla turns to climbing. She makes friends with a bonded group of climbers and begins adventuring through the park. She sets her sights on climbing El Capitan, a 3,000-foot trek. With the help of her new friends, she trains, climbs, and begins to grow up. Readers follow as Rilla experiences her first climb, fall, and love. There is relationship and friend drama as the novel confronts issues of sexism, racism, and abusive relationships. The narrative is occasionally bogged down by too much technical climbing lingo, but an appended glossary will help clarify the terms for the uninitiated. There is also a resource list of further media, such as books and films, on Yosemite and climbing for those interested in learning more. The recreational drug use and profanity makes this more appropriate for older readers. This YA is reminiscent of Cheryl Strayed's Wild and will resonate with fans of coming-of-age and survival stories. VERDICT This tale of resilience and girl power is a great addition to libraries serving teens.-Morgan O'Reilly, Riverdale Country School, NY

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 1, 2018
After spectacularly messing up her life, a young woman is sent to live with her ranger half sister in Yosemite National Park.On her second night there, 17-year-old Rilla Skidmore is arrested for underage drinking, but a few days later she meets a group of too-cool 20-something climbers who take her under their collective wing. Amid the group's friendships and rivalries, Rilla finds she's a natural climber and soon focuses on tackling the challenging El Capitan. Unfortunately, Rilla is too full of self-pity to be likable; however, some character growth takes place as she discovers she's capable of positive actions, including no longer defending her ex-boyfriend for hitting her after she threw the first punch during the heated argument that got her sent away. There's an equitable diversity here: Adeena, one of the climbers who mentors Rilla, is a Muslim Pakistani woman, and Gage, another climber, is Korean-American. Rilla and her half sister, Thea, were raised by polyamorous parents. They have the same white biological mother, Rilla's father is also white, and Thea's father is Mexican. The gorgeous Yosemite Valley setting is the real star, but seemingly endless descriptions of climbing and its related terminology become tedious and slow the story down.This story may find its niche with readers who enjoy climbing. (glossary, further reading, author's note) (Fiction. 14-18)

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March 15, 2018
Grades 9-12 For Rilla, West Virginia is home, despite all its flaws. Her older half sister, Thea, got out, but Rilla doesn't plan to?this wrong-side-of-the-tracks life is the only one for her. So it's a shock when, after one bad incident, Rilla's mom sends her across the country to live with Thea, now a park ranger at Yosemite. Sullen, unhappy, and busted almost immediately for partying, Rilla isn't sure what to do with this new life until she finds herself befriended by a group of climbers. It's not like anything Rilla's ever done before, but she quickly learns the ropes and is soon setting goals. But even though she's growing, Rilla may not be able to leave her past behind. Rilla is both streetwise and sheltered: her and Thea's mom is polyamorous, but Rilla struggles when learning that Thea is a lesbian. Lemon (Done Dirt Cheap, 2017) deftly navigates one girl's growing self-awareness, and pairs it with a frank discussion of economic diversity. As for the mountain climbing? That's enough to hook any adventure junkie.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)

January 1, 2019
Leaving behind a volatile life in West Virginia, Rilla arrives in Yosemite to stay with her park-ranger half-sister. Rilla's out of her element but is eventually drawn to a group of rock climbers, including competitive Petra, confident Adeena, and intense Walker. Rilla determines to prove herself capable--of climbing El Capitan and of controlling her own story--in this appealing coming-of-age drama. Reading list. Glos.

(Copyright 2019 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)