Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Jun 2021
368 pages
Genre: Thrillers
Publication Information
What Beauty There Is is Cory Anderson's stunning YA novel about brutality and beauty, and about broken people trying to survive - perfect for fans of Patrick Ness, Laura Ruby, and Meg Rosoff.
To understand the truth, you have to start at the beginning.
Winter in Idaho. The sky is dark. It is cold enough to crack bones.
Living in harsh poverty, Jack Dahl is holding his breath. He and his younger brother have nothing―except each other. And now Jack faces a stark choice: lose his brother to foster care or find the drug money that sent his father to prison.
He chooses the money.
Ava Bardem lives in isolation, a life of silence. For seventeen years her father, a merciless man, has controlled her fate. He has taught her to love no one. Now Victor Bardem is stalking the same money as Jack. When he picks up on Jack's trail, Ava must make her own wrenching choice: remain silent or speak, and help the brothers survive.
Choices. They come at a price.
"Anderson's debut features intricate plotting and action that hold up against the best thriller novels, yet it is all the more remarkable for its tender, multidimensional characterization and sharp, crystalline prose...Riveting and unforgettable." - Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"A gorgeous, intense, and shocking look at chaos, survival, fate, and betrayal...A first purchase and a must-read. Prepare to be haunted and chilled to the bone by this exceptional story." - School Library Journal (starred review)
"Anderson's starkly atmospheric thriller illuminates ways in which cycles of poverty and incarceration can disenfranchise children. Supporting characters, however, especially the two primary villains, suffer from indiscrete renderings, and a character 'disfigured' after an attempted scalping is unfortunately named 'Red.'" - Publishers Weekly
"Readers who like their novels pitch dark and bone chilling will revel in the horrifying villain and the trio of kids locked into a dilemma they cannot possibly resolve." - Bulletin for the Center of Children's Books
"Beautifully written and superbly constructed, Anderson pulls you onto a chilling footpath of love and loss―and keeps you there until you've read every last word." - Ruta Sepetys, #1 New York Times bestselling author and Carnegie Medal winner of Salt to the Sea
This information about What Beauty There Is 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.
Cory Anderson is a winner of the League of Utah Writers Young Adult Novel Award and Grand Prize in the Storymakers Conference First Chapter Contest. She lives in Farmington, Utah with her family. What Beauty There Is is her debut novel.
The Stone Home
by Crystal Hana Kim
A moving family drama and coming-of-age story revealing a dark corner of South Korean history.
The Flower Sisters
by Michelle Collins Anderson
From the new Fannie Flagg of the Ozarks, a richly-woven story of family, forgiveness, and reinvention.
The Funeral Cryer by Wenyan Lu
Debut novelist Wenyan Lu brings us this witty yet profound story about one woman's midlife reawakening in contemporary rural China.
Your guide toexceptional books
BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.
