Thirsty by Jas Hammonds (review)

Reviewed by: Thirsty by Jas Hammonds Jessie Maimone Hammonds, Jas Thirsty. Roaring Brook, 2024 336p Trade ed. ISBN 9781250816597 19. 99 E-book ed. ISBN 9781250816603 11. 99 Reviewed from digital galleys R Gr. 9-12 Blake was bullied in middle school for everything from her crooked teeth to her frizzy hair. Now, in the summer before college, she has learned how to do her hair and helped her parents pay for her braces, and she wants to be the center of attention whenever possible. Along with her girlfriend, Ella, and best friend, Annetta, Blake spends the summer partying and going through the initiation for the Serena Society, their soon-to-be college's secret society for women of color. But as the summer and hazing goes on, Blake is drinking to the point of blacking out, and when Blake gets wasted and ruins a family trip to a theme park, everything in her life comes crashing down. Surprisingly, the book avoids a didactic tone, instead offering a compassionate look at how quickly drinking can consume a person's whole life, especially when it is used personally as an emotional crutch and socially to celebrate special occasions. While the story depicts Blake as someone coming to terms with alcoholism, Hammonds also explores the complexities of families who seem to lack a genuine connection and the pent-up rage of ignoring problems for too long. The morality of drinking is authentically gray, here, and readers aren't left with a feeling that drinking is wrong, but that it might not be for everyone, and that there is always space to begin again. Includes author's note. Copyright © 2024 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois