Saving Kenny

Saving Kenny by Corrine Gail immerses readers into the poignant journey of three siblings grappling with the burdens of an emotionally and physically abusive mother. Their collective resilience forms a compelling narrative thread as they navigate life's tumultuous terrain, relying on one another for solace and protection. While Gail masterfully captures the essence of perseverance and courage, the backdrop against which this tale unfolds, set in the 1960s, feels somewhat muted. Despite occasional nods to the era's societal upheavals such as the Vietnam War and the Black Panther Party movement, these significant historical contexts often take a backseat to the siblings' individual passions, particularly Kenny and Gwen's fervor for the arts. This oversight detracts from the narrative's potential to delve deeper into the socio-political context of the time, leaving readers yearning for a more immersive exploration of the era's transformative events. Moreover, the narrative occasionally falters under the weight of excessive description, straining the flow of the storytelling and hindering its natural progression. Nevertheless, Saving Kenny remains a compelling testament to the resilience of the human spirit, underscored by Gail's poignant portrayal of familial bonds amidst adversity. Despite its shortcomings, the novel resonates with an authenticity that speaks to the enduring power of love and solidarity in the face of life's greatest trials.

Kenny, his sister, and brother are dealing with a physically abusive mother, but all three have dreams that they hope will help them end up leaving the house. Kenny wants to be a costume designer although his older brother is discouraging until he realizes Kenny is good. Kenny’s sister, Gwen, wants to go to Juilliard. The older brother, Vaughn, was going to let Kenny live with him safe from mom when he graduated, but when he receives a letter from the draft Vaughn leaves for Canada. When Gwen and Kenny apply to Juilliard and a private school, the mom finds out and is mad. Kenny wakes up in an ambulance. What happens then?

I really enjoyed this book. Kenny and his older sister and brother live with their abusive mother in Boston. With his sister looking to move to college and his brother being favoured by their mother, Kenny is worried about what will happen next. When he goes to see the opera, Aida, with his sister, he is enthralled, not just by the performance, but by the costumes worm by the characters. He knows that this is the career he wishes to pursue but finds it difficult to balance this with pleasing his brother and peers as well as keeping off his mother's critical radar.

I really liked the characters in this book, especially the three siblings and the downstairs neighbour. This book really illustrates how important other adults can be to children, especially when those they should be able to rely on let them down.

E ARC Provided by Edelweiss Plus

Kenny Reed lives with his mother, older sister Gwen, and older brother Vaughn in the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston in 1968. His brother works at a Black owned bookstore and is very invested in the Black Panthers movement, and has just graduated from high school. His sister is enrolled at a private school, and is taking singing lessons in the hope that she can get into a performing arts program for college and become an opera star. She has helped Kenny get a scholarship to a private middle school, so she and Kenny take a daily one hour bus ride to attend their schools. Kenny has a best friend, Ted, who is wealthy, and invites him to spend time with his at his parents' summer house, but this falls through after Kenny draws a picture that Ted thinks is making fun of his father. The mother has fits of rage over small things, and is abusive; at one point, the milk for her coffee has gone bad, so she slams Kenny's head into the sink to make him smell it, and orders him to go to the store in his pajamas to get more. Vaughn and Gwen often serve as buffers, and he is afraid of what will happen when they both move out of the house. Gwen has taken Kenny to the opera, and he is fascinated by the costumes in Aida. He goes to a summer camp, and wants to take costume design. There's even another boy in the class, Walter, but Vaugn says that sewing is for "sissies" and forces Kenny to take drumming, which many of his friends are taking. After talking to the owners of the bookstore where Vaughn works they help Vaughn see that Black men have always been involved in texiles and sewing, so Vaughn relents. Kenny makes a tie dyed dashiki for his mother, and wins the class prize (a sewing kit!), but his mother shows no interest in it at all, but continues her abusive ways. When Vaughn gets his draft notice, he decides to go to Toronto with his girlfriend instead. This leaves Gwen and Kenny alone with their mother. When she becomes ill with pneumonia, they reach out to their mother's cousin Betty, a nurse, in Philadelphia, and she comes to help the family out. Their neighbor, Miss Temple, helps out as well. Recovery takes a while, but the minute Betty is gone, the mother is having Kenny buy her cigarettes and returns to her horrible ways. When Gwen and Kenny decide that Kenny should try to get a scholarship to the boarding school his friend Ted is attending, the mother beats Gwen and tells her to leave, and beats Kenny as well. He ends up in the hospital, and Miss Temple decides that the children will stay with her. Betty arrives and makes sure that the mother gets psychiatric help. An epilogue gives a brighter view of the world after Reed children are all in better circumstances.
Strengths: An author's note says that this is based, sadly, on some of the author's own experiences, and this first hand knowledge is evident in the attention to the details of daily life in 1968. I was thrilled to see information not only about the Black Panther movement, but about draft dodging, which is a topic about there could be a LOT more books. The mother's troubled past contrasted nicely with the drive her children had to not only go to college, but to pursue things that excited them. Kenny's interest in sewing would have made him a bit of a target, and this topic is treated realistically as well. This is a good length, moves quickly, and is an excellent historical fiction choice.
Weaknesses: There could have been better pacing to the arc of the mother's abuse; I would have liked to see more tension built in between the positive experiences that Gwen and Kenny have pursuing their activities.
What I really think: This is an excellent book along the lines of Stealing Mt. Rushmore, where problems that still exist in the present day are showcased against a historic background. Have this on hand for readers who want historical fiction like Magoons' The Rock and the River or William's One Crazy Summer, and definitely pair it with Magoon's excellent Revolution in Our Time, the most definitive coverage of the Black Panther Movement I've seen.

Wow! 4.5 stars for this gem of a book. I couldn't put it down. The best part of the book: the appropriate cultural aspects. I could see the people, the hairstyles, and I could feel the vibe and pulse of the city. The social class system was a necessary addition, although I don't fully believe (perhaps understand??) how Kenny was so easily taken in and cared for. The background of that situation was glossed over. The sibling relationship was built up nicely. Friends and loss of friends was a great addition. I kept thinking the character of Kenny's mom could have been developed a bit more. She seemed to always be on the outskirts, angry, and seething. I wanted to know more about her. Great story that I would recommend!