At some point in our lives we all see them.
The "Missing Person" posters hanging on telephone posts that flap to an unknown breeze as if to call for your momentary attention. The black and white eyes gaze as you read through your morning paper where one picture shows what the missing person would have looked like today and how they looked like at the time of their disappearance.
These are the anonymous faces that gaze upon us with muted expressions that are frozen in time. How often do we pass them with unseeing eyes that, upon closer inspection, could be that of your neighbor, former classmate...or that of ourselves.
This is the story of Jane Anonymous.
She is the voice of millions unknown to us in the world.
Her story unfolds like a slow-building song with a building crescendo that we can't ignore. At the first page, you can already hear that distant song composed of a million voices. Be ready for the journey ahead.
Eyes opened.
It is by no means that I lightly write: Laurie Faria Stolarz is an impressive writer. Like Emma Donoghue (the author of Room), Stolarz breaks the glass ceiling of our society and shows that there is a world beyond our safe compounds where others have to hold on with fierce determination to survive in the midst of captivity and despair. Jane Anonymous is a work that reopens your eyes to our world through a staggering journey presented by Jane, a teenage high school girl, who presents a dual narrative of coping with life after her kidnapping in the NOW and overcoming the horrendous situation she was in THEN.
More than a story, Jane Anonymous is a profound experience where Stolarz immersed us in the confounds of Jane's life and how her kidnapping changed her life and those around her. Throughout the work, readers experience Jane's difficulty to, not only escape her kidnapper, but the ghost of who she used to be before she was abducted.
This was a heartfelt book that went through a traumatic experience, took us to dark places, and held an underlying element of healing and hope for the future. Jane Anonymous is a work that brims with realism and changes your perspective on life and makes you face the monsters in the shadows of society with a newfound light.
I certainly rate this spectacular read as my first 5 star contemporary fiction of the year!
BOOK INFORMATION
Jane Anonymous
by Laurie Faria Stolarz Publisher: Wednesday Books Release Date: January 7th 2020
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary
Synopsis:
Bestselling author Laurie Faria Stolarz returns with Jane Anonymous, a gripping tale of a seventeen-year-old girl’s kidnapping and her struggle to fit back into her life after she escapes.
Then, “Jane” was just your typical 17-year-old in a typical New England suburb getting ready to start her senior year. She had a part-time job she enjoyed, an awesome best friend, overbearing but loving parents, and a crush on a boy who was taking her to see her favorite band. She never would’ve imagined that in her town where nothing ever happens, a serieas of small coincidences would lead to a devastating turn of events that would forever change her life.
Now, it’s been three months since “Jane” escaped captivity and returned home. Three months of being that girl who was kidnapped, the girl who was held by a “monster.” Three months of writing down everything she remembered from those seven months locked up in that stark white room. But, what if everything you thought you knew―everything you thought you experienced―turned out to be a lie?
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AUTHOR INFORMATION
Laurie Faria Stolarz grew up in Salem, MA, attended Merrimack College, and received an MFA in Creative Writing from Emerson College in Boston.
Laurie Faria Stolarz is an American author of young adult fiction novels, best known for her Blue is for Nightmares series. Her works, which feature teenage protagonists, blend elements found in mystery and romance novels.
Stolarz found sales success with her first novel, Blue is for Nightmares, and followed it up with three more titles in the series, White is for Magic, Silver is for Secrets, and Red is for Remembrance, as well as a companion graphic novel, Black is for Beginnings. Stolarz is also the author of the Touch series (Deadly Little Secret, Deadly Little Lies, Deadly Little Games, Deadly Little Voices, and Deadly Little Lessons), as well as Bleed and Project 17. With more than two million books sold worldwide, Stolarz's titles have been named on various awards list.
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TOUR SCHEDULE
Prize: Win (1) of (2) copies of
JANE ANONYMOUS by Laurie Faria Stolarz
(US/CAN Only)
Stars: 7th January 2020
Ends: 21st January 2020
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