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by Kwame Alexander and Mary Rand Hess
From award-winning and New York Times bestselling author Kwame Alexander, with Mary Rand Hess, comes Solo, a YA novel written in poetic verse.
Solo tells the story of seventeen-year-old Blade Morrison, who knows the life of a rock star isn't really about the glitz and glamour. All the new cars and money in the world can't make up for the scathing tabloid covers or the fact that his father is struggling with just about every addiction under the sun - including a desperate desire to make a comeback and regain his former fame.
Haunted by memories of his mother - who died when Blade was nine - and the ruin his father's washed-up legacy and life have brought to the family, Blade is left to figure out life on his own. But, he's not all alone: He's got the friendship of a jazz-musician mentor, Robert; the secret love of a girlfriend, Chapel; and his music.
All may not be well in the Morrison home, but things are looking up for Blade, until he discovers a deeply protected family secret - one that further threatens his relationship with his family and has him questioning his own identity. Thrown into a tailspin, Blade decides the only way he will understand his past and begin his future is to find out the truth behind the music and himself. He soon sets out on a journey that will change everything he thought to be true.
His quest lands him in Ghana, stuck in a village just shy of where answers to the secret can be found. There, Blade discovers a friendship he couldn't have imagined, a people founded in family and community, and a reconciliation he never expected.
With his signature intricacy, intimacy, and poetic style, Kwame Alexander explores what it means to finally come home.
"Starred Review. Scattered throughout the novel-in-verse are some of Blade's original rock ballads, though every poem feels like a song, pulsing with Alexander's signature lyrical style." - Booklist
"Starred Review. A contemporary hero's journey, brilliantly told." - Kirkus
This information about Solo was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Kwame Alexander is a poet, educator, and New York Times bestselling author of 24 books, including The Crossover, which received the 2015 John Newbery Medal for the Most Distinguished Contribution to American literature for Children. Kwame writes for children of all ages. His other works include He Said She Said, a YA novel; Booked, a middle grade novel; and several picture books, including
Mary Rand Hess has been writing and editing professionally for over twenty years. She writes everything from poetry, novels, and picture books, to screenplays and teleplays. Her work has been published in several regional, national, and international publications. In addition, she has had the privilege of running an independent publishing company, while working with award-winning, high profile figures in the literary, sports, and entertainment industries. She is the co-author of the picture book, Animal Arc (National Geographic), with Kwame Alexander and Deanna Nikaido. She is also the author of The Day I Met The Nuts, and the Gabe and Freinds series. Over the years, Mary has been a Stephen Minister, and has taught creative writing, drama, art, and Sunday school. In her spare time, she loves to compose on the piano, listen to copious amounts of music, read, create mixed media art, and spend time with family and friends. She can't imagine a world without stories, poetry, and rock and roll.
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