The Free by Lauren McLaughlin is a young adult novel about a juvenile delinquent and his experiences during his time at a detention center.

Isaac West is a sixteen-year-old boy who is imprisoned in Haverland juvenile prison. He is in a juvenile prison for 30 days because he stole a car and injuring its owner in the process. Part of his sentence requires him to go to group therapy where its members have to relive the crimes they have committed. In the beginning, Isaac is only focused on getting out of 'juvie' as soon as possible. While behind bars he is only thinking about his sisters and the many misdeeds of his alcoholic mother. He does not feel responsible for his crime. As time went on, Issac discovers a lot about crime rivalry, relationships and taking responsibility for one's actions. His fellow inmates are not only brutal murderers and thieves, but all kids who have been neglected or let down by adults who failed them. They have dreams and aspirations; talents and fears, and they have to live with terrible burdens. Things start to change when memories from the past start to resurface that he'd had locked away for a long time. This incident sets a development into motion that might put not only his life in danger but also that of his beloved sister. Suddenly he is forced to take responsibility for his criminal and personal past.


I received this ARC from Soho Press and Soho Teen via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

'The Free' is a young adult novel written by Lauren McLaughlin about a juvenile delinquent and his experiences during his time at a detention centre.

Isaac West is a sixteen-year-old boy who is imprisoned in Haverland juvenile prison. His 30-days sentence for stealing a car and injuring its owner in the process requires group therapy in which its members have to relive the crimes they have committed. At first, Isaac is only focused on getting out of 'juvie' as soon as possible, only thinking about his sister and the many misdeeds of his alcoholic mother. He does not feel responsible for his crime for a simple reason: he did not hurt anyone. He took the blame and the prison sentence for another boy, who like him, is part of a car-stealing gang led by his teacher. However, in the course of his time at Haverland, he discovers a lot about crime rivalry, relationships and taking responsibility for one's actions. His fellow inmates are not only brutal murderers and thieves, but all kids who have been neglected or let down by adults who failed them on an epic scale. They have dreams and aspirations; they have talents and fears, and they have to live with terrible burdens. Things start to change when memories from the past start to resurface that he'd had locked away for a long time. This incident sets a development into motion that might put not only his life in danger but also that of his beloved sister. Suddenly he is forced to take responsibility for his criminal and personal past.

This novel is an okay read for readers from 14 years and up, however, I would not consider it a must. I think particularly teenage boys might find it easy to identify with the main character's experiences and thoughts. The first-person narration offers an additional opportunity to empathise with the character's experience. Also the language, as far as I can assess it, is very authentic and makes the characters very likable and relatable. It gives members of society a voice that often goes unheard as these children are painted as misfits and good-for-nothings. Therefore, the novel tries to be very inclusive in trying to empowering the weak.

Unfortunately, the plot is very slow and not fully fleshed out as opposed to its characters. Only towards the last quarter, the book manages to find its right pace. But also in this part the author rather jumps from scene to scene without adding proper transitions and thereby creating a lot of gaps in the story. The lack of a real plot for the majority of the book makes the reading process slow and dull. In my opinion, this is the biggest problem of "problem books." The author is so concerned about the character's issues that they forget about the importance of a coherent plot to let the reader experience these problems for themselves. Moreover, sometimes the way the action unfolds is unrealistic. It seems that the author wanted to wrap up everything very nicely for the main character, but she actually pressed him into a prefabricated happy-end mould. Although character development is important, it still has to be realistic. Going from complete ignorance to understanding and wisdom in the course of a few weeks is simply not believable. Eventually, the author failed in providing a realistic experience of crime and injustice on account of forcing a rehabilitation on to the character the author herself would like to see in a perfect world. Personally, in a novel about juvenile delinquents, I would expect more grit, more suffering and a realism that leaves an unforgettable impression on the reader. If you really want to raise people's awareness about juvenile delinquency, its causes and effects, you should not soften its brutal reality. I think by doing so, the author did her whole endeavor and her proclaimed proteges an injustice.

I would recommend the book to anyone interested in this topic and I might consider ordering it for our school library. I think this book would have had great potential if the author had not spared her characters some suffering and a dose of realism. Instead, the result is a book that many teenagers will enjoy, but hardly anyone will love.