Winter Town

by Stephen Emond

Winter Town follows two childhood best friends who learn that growing up means growing apart. This is written from both points of views

Every winter, Evan looks forward to a visit from Lucy, a childhood pal who moved away after her parent's divorce. But when Lucy arrives this year, she's changed. The 'girl next door' has chopped dyed black hair, a nose stud and a scowl. But even though Lucy's changed, Evan and Lucy connect again. And this time, Evan falls in love. Lucy has secrets. She doesn't tell Evan about her mother's new abusive boyfriend, her own violent boyfriend and the fights that got her kicked out of her house. She feels guilty and starts to resent Evan's picture perfect (boring) life. She knows Evan won't change and Lucy knows she must break his heart and move on.

The next winter, after transferring to an art college against his father's wishes, Evan sees Lucy again. And this time, they know the timing is right.

This unique story features gorgeous black-and-white illustrations throughout (comic strips, spot art, chapter heads, etc.).

• ISBN10: 0316133310
• ISBN13: 9780316133319
• Publish Date: 20 December 2012 (first published 1 January 2011)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 6 August 2021
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Little, Brown & Company
• Imprint: Little, Brown Young Readers
• Format: Paperback (UK Trade)
• Pages: 336
• Language: English

Reviews

[Joséphine]

In and of itself I would've given the novel merely two stars. I gave the third star for the illustrations and their fitting integration into the book. Either way, I wasn't impressed by the style of writing, plot or characterization. Overall, "Winter Town" fell so flat for me, I was actually relieved to reach the end. Thankfully there were redeeming moments which prevented me from chucking the book entirely. Of course there were the illustrations. Then there was the switch in perspective from Evan to Lucy, even though the author chose to stick to narrating in third person. The switch made reading a little more refreshing as it allowed the reader to see what both Evan and Lucy were all about. The attempt to show both Evan's and Lucy's worlds in a bid to reconcile their relationship lent the book its redeeming quality.

Sadly, the negatives were glaring throughout. For one, there seemed to be little direction. Either that or Evan's own lack of direction overpowered the narrative. There was an uneasy awkwardness to the writing too. It lacked substance in that it glossed a lot over the surface.