A Brand New Address
Kathleen Rowland
- Review
- for
- A
- BRAND
- NEW
- ADDRESS
A
- BRAND
- NEW
- ADDRESS
- is
- a
- quirky
- coming-of-age
- story
- taking
- place
- during
- Earth’s
- 22nd-century
- Second
- Ice
- Age.
- Plucky
- heroine,
- Yardley
- Van
- Dyke,
- faces
- a
- fiendish
- combination
- of
- family
- tensions,
- personal
- insecurities,
- and
- life-threatening
- cold.
- She
- is
- a
- teenager
- with
- whom
- any
- reader
- can
- identify.
The
- story
- tells
- parallel,
- multi-layered
- stories
- about
- Yardley,
- Marchand,
- her
- twin
- brother,
- and
- their
- companions.
- They
- experience
- the
- typical
- laughs,
- anxieties,
- and
- ups
- and
- downs
- of
- everyday
- life.
- Their
- trajectories,
- though,
- are
- riddled
- with
- moments
- of
- deathly
- seriousness
- as
- they
- are
- forced
- to
- confront
- the
- realities
- of
- Earth’s
- dwindling
- resources
- and
- the
- grave
- dangers
- of
- space
- travel.
- Caught
- between
- her
- attachment
- to
- her
- greenhouse
- in
- frigid
- California
- and
- her
- desire
- to
- join
- suave,
- intrepid
- Marchand
- LaFond
- on
- the
- intergalactic
- adventure
- of
- a
- lifetime,
- Yardley
- blossoms
- as
- a
- person,
- flourishes
- as
- an
- intellectual,
- and
- is
- physically
- transplanted
- to
- a
- new
- environment
- –
- as
- is
- her
- beloved
- vegetable
- garden.
A
- BRAND
- NEW
- ADDRESS
- mirrors
- both
- the
- wisdom
- and
- the
- awkwardness
- of
- teens
- with
- diverse
- personalities.
- In
- different
- ways
- Yardley
- and
- Marchand
- fight
- against
- the
- uglier
- aspects
- of
- human
- nature.
- Some
- are
- corrupt
- such
- as
- octogenarian
- CEO,
- her
- right
- hand
- man,
- and
- two
- unsavory
- jailbirds.
- Yardley
- and
- Marchand
- shield
- innocent
- young
- sisters
- who
- suddenly
- lose
- both
- parents.
- A
- BRAND
- NEW
- ADDRESS
- does
- not
- shy
- away
- from
- the
- sobering
- tragedies,
- the
- terrifying
- uncertainties,
- or
- the
- unfair
- nature
- of
- many
- of
- the
- challenges
- faced
- by
- both
- youths
- and
- adults.
- But
- far
- from
- a
- simple
- cautionary
- tale,
- A
- BRAND
- NEW
- ADDRESS
- is
- also
- a
- satisfying
- love
- story,
- an
- erudite
- romp
- through
- space,
- and
- a
- courageous
- call
- to
- protect
- the
- soaring
- potential
- of
- the
- human spirit.
pro-mbooks3 : libris
