Tinfoil Crowns

March 1, 2019
With her quirky sense of humor and handcrafted tinfoil accessories, 17-year-old Fit is a YouTube sensation. Fit is driven to rise above her circumstances. When she was a toddler, her family had a comfortable, middle-class life. This all changed when Fit's mother, River, in the hellish grip of postpartum psychosis, tried to kill her and her infant brother. River went to prison, Fit's grandfather gained custody, and the family lost everything. Fit's trauma metastasized into a temper that quickly escalates into destructive rage when triggered. Her legions of fans and their comments, shares, and likes are her comfort. Her mother's eventual release from prison provides just the kind of storyline her followers crave, and Fit's manipulation of the mother-daughter drama brings the views she needs to secure her big break but leaves a slew of wounded relationships in its wake. Debut author Jones weaves together enormous themes--mental health, trauma, social media, and class--without a hint of judgment. This of-the-minute narrative is accessible and authentic, layered with diverse, flawed, and immensely likable characters. The perspective shifts between Fit and River, the latter both in the past when she lost touch with reality and in the present as she achingly works to piece herself and her family back together after more than a decade of incarceration. Fit and her family are white.An empathetic glimpse into the rise of tomorrow's celebrity du jour. (Fiction. 14-18)

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May 1, 2019

Gr 9 Up-Seventeen-year-old Fit lives for her fans. She hopes her song parodies, her goofy antics, and the trademark tinfoil accessories she wears in her online videos will gain her celebrity status and enough money to escape her small town. Fit and her brother Frankie live with their grandfather; their mother, River, is in jail for attempting to kill them when she was overcome by postpartum psychosis 14 years ago. When River is released from jail and returns to live with them, Fit decides to pursue fame at any cost. This novel explores numerous complex themes, including mental health, sexual identity, and social media as a part of and substitution for meaningful relationships. That these themes are tackled simultaneously is ambitious, but the fact that they are explored subtly, in a well-paced story full of strongly developed, sympathetic characters, is downright impressive. Jones uses third-person narration, limited through either Fit or River. Fit's chapters have an immediacy and frenetic energy reflective of her emotional state. Her feelings of rage ("a drop of lava at the back of her neck") and betrayal overwhelm her and result in violent tantrums and sarcastic posturing. River, full of self-loathing, welcomes Fit's vitriol. She imagines evil living inside her mind as "a small burnt and blistered popcorn kernel" that she can never remove. Both characters feel authentic, the description of their emotional processing giving greater depth and purpose to their actions. As Fit begins to use River to increase her renown, readers may find themselves considering the cost of celebrity and the dark side of social media. VERDICT This tale combining family trauma with the incessant pursuit of online fame is recommended for general purchase.-Elizabeth Lovsin, Deerfield Public Library, IL

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