Friday, June 22, 2018

The Fall of Innocence by Jenny Torres Sanchez

 The Fall of Innocence by Jenny Torres Sanchez is another book I had been waiting on for quite a while.  I remembered the beauty of her last novel, Because of the Sun, and was excited to read her newest novel.  This book was a devastating read.  It was devastating and heartbreaking, yet beautiful as well.  Torres has written an incredible story about trauma and grief and the effects it has on not only the individual, but the family, friends, and community that surround them.  It is a story that shows that tragedy is not always easily overcome, that it sometimes consumes us.  This one has left me feeling numb and I know it is going to stick with me for a long time.

The Fall of Innocence is the story of Emilia, a teenage girl who suffered an unbelievably brutal attack when she was just 8 years old.  This attack not only left her physically damaged, but emotionally and psychologically damaged as well.  After slowly working her way back to just a shell of who she was before, devastating revelations come out about the attack she suffered years before.  And try as she might to "be okay," this news has begun to unravel her.  It has caused her to rethink all that she has come to accept.  And in the end, it all may be too much for one person to overcome. 

As heartbreaking as this story is, it is definitely one of my favorite reads of the year so far. 

From Amazon:

The Lovely Bones meets Thirteen Reasons Why in this gorgeous, haunting, and tragic novel that examines the crippling--and far-reaching--effects of one person's trauma on her family, her community, and herself.

For the past eight years, sixteen-year-old Emilia DeJesus has done her best to move on from the traumatic attack she suffered in the woods behind her elementary school. She's forced down the memories--the feeling of the twigs cracking beneath her, choking on her own blood, unable to scream. Most of all, she's tried to forget about Jeremy Lance, the boy responsible, the boy who caused her such pain. Emilia believes that the crows who watched over her that day, who helped her survive, are still on her side, encouraging her to live fully. And with the love and support of her mother, brother, and her caring boyfriend, Emilia is doing just that.

But when a startling discovery about her attacker's identity comes to light, and the memories of that day break through the mental box in which she'd shut them away, Emilia is forced to confront her new reality and make sense of shifting truths about her past, her family, and herself.

A compulsively-readable tragedy that reminds us of the fragility of human nature.

Praise for The Fall of Innocence

* "Sanchez deftly shows the long-lasting impact of the assault. . . . An intimate and tragic look at how traumatic incidents affect individuals, their families, and others around them." --Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW

* "Sanchez writes with stunning detail, showcasing the beauty that can be found in small moments, in family interactions, in nature, and in seemingly everyday objects. . . and illustrates how a trauma like Emilia's has widespread effects." --School Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW

* "It is hard to imagine a more beautifully told, more moving, or more authentic story of one family’s journey through unbearable pain." --VOYA, STARRED REVIEW

"Beautifully written but ineffably sad, Emilia's story is a case study of trauma and its aftermath." --BCCB

"Emilia's inner world both captivates and devastates." --Publishers Weekly

"Internal and contemplative, [this novel's] haunting quality lingers." --Booklist

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