A tender-souled boy reeling from the death of his best friend struggles to fit into a world that wants him to grow up tough and unfeeling in this stunning middle grade novel in verse from the Newbery Honor–winning author of Genesis Begins Again.
It’s the summer before high school and Isaiah feels lost. He thought this summer was going to be just him and his homies Drew and Darius, hangin’ out, doing wheelies, and watching martial arts movies—a lot of chillin’ before high school and the Future. But more and more, Drew will barely talk to him—barely even look at him—and though he won’t admit it, Isaiah knows it’s because of Darius, because Darius is…gone.
And Isaiah wasn’t even there when it happened, with his best friend in his final moments. But he’s going to be there now. Him and Drew both, they’re gonna spend the summer breaking every single record they can think of, for Darius, for his dream of breaking world records. But Drew’s not the same Drew, and Isaiah being Isaiah isn’t enough for Drew anymore. Not his taste in music, his love for D&D, his interest in taking photos, or his aversion to jumping off rooftops. The real Isaiah is sensitive; he’s uncool.
And one day something unspeakable happens to Isaiah that makes him think Drew’s right. If only he could be less sensitive, more tough, less weird, more cool, more contained, less him, things would be easier. But how much can Isaiah keep inside until he shatters wide open?
320 pages 978-1481465830 Ages 10 and up
Keywords: novel in verse, boys and men, African American, African American author, loss, grief, friendship, dealing with emotions, dealing with feelings, boys' issues, being yourself, self acceptance, feelings, emotions, fitting in, 10 year old, 11 year old, 12 year old, 13 year old
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“Panic in Detroit,
I asked for an autograph
He wanted to stay home,
I wish someone would phone.
Panic in Detroit”
– David Bowie (1973)
Eighth grader Isaiah Randolph is a character you can feel, and so feel for:
“I now gather handfuls of soil in my palms
crush the dirt tight between my fingers
and hold it.
Hold it. Breathe.”
“Throughout the last few hundred years, they’ve had many names. Eureka, Noe, Los Pechos de la Chola. The Grand Tetons. Today, those across the Bay Area know the two mountain crests jutting from the center of San Francisco as Twin Peaks. And for skateboarders, the Peaks have long been a destination. Some go for a quick nature break, or to relax at the end of the day with a sunset view. Some seek the thrilling, circuitous hill bomb down Twin Peaks Blvd to Portola Drive, leading to more hills in the surrounding neighborhoods. Others, in more recent years, have sought refuge on the smooth asphalt of the eastern roadway at the top of the hill. This section has been closed to traffic since 2016 and has quietly become a DIY skate spot with great flatground and stunning views of one of the most beautiful cities on the planet. On October 19, Red Bull will transform the stretch of road into a street course for the Red Bull Sky Line skateboarding competition, judged by local pros with cash prizes.”
(I’m not far below there, on a long, steady, downhill slope with skaters flying by daily.)
My own personal experience with extreme sports began and ended with my being able to pull wheelies quite well on my Huffy banana bike. Earlier on, during that childhood era, I once received a Sidewalk Surfer (an inexpensive, early-Sixties, wooden forerunner of modern skateboards) for a Christmas present. After one day of practice–and one day of them watching me and envisioning the emergency dental bills–my parents made that board quickly disappear. Permanently.
The bottom line is that it’s taken me a while to catch up and read MID-AIR, a book with a seriously awesome cover image. But, luckily, news of last weekend’s competition got me reading.
“I Bet You
is how it always begins.
No matter the game or record.
One of us’ll throw out the first bet,
another’ll pick it up and double it,
another’ll snatch it back, triple it, like–
Dude,I bet you I’ll do thirty seconds over–
Bro, if you doing thirty, I know I’m going like sixty–
Yo, if you got sixty,I know I’ll pop at least ninety–
So on & so on
adding time to feats
we ain’t hardly gonna reach.
But it’s the talking that gets us psyched,
got us believing we’ve got gladiator might.
And it’s the believing that counts.”
Whether it’s bikes, boards, or backflips off the roof, Isaiah, Darius, and their new buddy Drew, are constantly daring and betting one another in order to achieve extreme feats; constantly imagining breaking all sorts of Guinness world records.
But at a moment of extreme chaos, as Darius tries to hold a wheelie and win one of those bets, and as a grumpy, old man gets in their faces for no good reason, Isaiah cannot yell fast enough to prevent the oncoming collision between his oldest, bestest friend and a rapidly approaching car.
MID-AIR is a powerfully moving, sometimes sweet and goofy, coming-of-age verse novel for tweens. It portrays how Darius’s demise significantly impacts and changes Isaiah and Drew as they complete middle school and spend the summer approaching the beginning of high school. It is an especially challenging time for Isaiah, who is hyper-aware that his hidden personal musical preferences are not in sync with most of his Black adolescent contemporaries.
I’ll bet you anything that MID-AIR will seriously (We will, we will) rock you.
Recommended by: Richie Partington, MLIS, California USA
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