Into the light

Title:

Into the light

Author:

Summary:

When you're like me, you have to lie. It’s been one year since Manny was cast out of his family and driven into the wilderness of the American Southwest. Since then, Manny lives by self-taught rules that keep him moving―and keep him alive. Now, he’s taking a chance on a traveling situation with the Varela family, whose attractive but surly son, Carlos, seems to promise a new future. I can't let anyone down. Eli abides by the rules of his family, living in a secluded community that raised him to believe his obedience will be rewarded. But an unsettling question slowly eats away at Eli’s once unwavering faith in Reconciliation: Why can’t he remember his past? What am I supposed to do? But the reported discovery of an unidentified body found in the hills of Idyllwild, California, will draw both of these young men into facing their biggest fears and confronting their own identity―and who they are allowed to be. Find the truth.

General Note:

"Keep your secrets close to home" -- Cover.

Edition:

First edition.

Physical Description:

442 pages ; 22 cm.

Genre:

Thrillers (Fiction)

Subject Term:

Psychic trauma -- Fiction.

Gay men -- Fiction.

Identity (Philosophical concept) -- Fiction.

Evangelists -- Fiction.

Siblings -- Fiction.

Adoption -- Fiction.

Homeless persons -- Fiction.

Mexican Americans -- Fiction.

Publisher:

Tor Publishing Group,

Publication Date:

2023

ISBN:

9781250812254

Publication Information:

New York : Tor Publishing Group, 2023.

Call Number:

YA OSHIRO

Holds: Copies:

Available:*

Item Barcode	Collection	Call Number	Status	Item Holds
33607003685826	New Young Adult	OSHIRO	Searching... Unknown	Searching... Unavailable

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

When you're like me, you have to lie.
It's been one year since Manny was cast out of his family and driven into the wilderness of the American Southwest. Since then, Manny lives by self-taught rules that keep him moving--and keep him alive. Now, he's taking a chance on a traveling situation with the Varela family, whose attractive but surly son, Carlos, seems to promise a new future.

I can't let anyone down.
Eli abides by the rules of his family, living in a secluded community that raised him to believe his obedience will be rewarded. But an unsettling question slowly eats away at Eli's once unwavering faith in Reconciliation: Why can't he remember his past?

What am I supposed to do?
But the reported discovery of an unidentified body found in the hills of Idyllwild, California, will draw both of these young men into facing their biggest fears and confronting their own identity--and who they are allowed to be.

Find the truth.
For fans of Courtney Summers and Tiffany D. Jackson, Into the Light is a ripped-from-the-headlines story with Oshiro's signature mix of raw emotions and visceral prose--but with a startling twist you'll have to read to believe.

Author Notes

MARK OSHIRO is the #1 New York Times bestselling, award-winning Latinx queer author of Anger Is a Gift, Each of Us a Desert, and Into the Light, as well as their middle grade books The Insiders , You Only Live Once, David Bravo , and Star Wars Hunters: Battle for the Arena . They are the coauthor (with Rick Riordan) of The Sun and the Star: A Nico Di Angelo Adventure . When not writing, they are trying to pet every dog in the world.

Reviews (2)

School Library Journal Review

Gr 9 Up--Seventeen-year-old Manny has been unhoused and traveling California for a year, ever since he was cast out of his deeply religious family. A Latinx-cued, queer adoptee, Manny has experienced multiple forms of trauma from previous foster families, but his last family, the Sullivans, are deeply devoted to televangelist Deacon Thompson. Thompson encourages white couples to adopt and "save" children of color. Manny and his biological sister Elena are quickly sent to Reconciliation, a religious camp that uses conversion style therapies to "re-educate" the adopted children. When Manny is unable to be "saved," he is cast out and separated from Elena. With the help of the Varela family, Manny begins to process his trauma and sets out to reunite with his sister. Oshiro uses an intentional nonlinear time line to build suspense and slowly reveal the mystery of the plot and an interesting twist. However, the strength of the story is the horrific realism and exploration of corrupted religious institutions, the broken foster care system, and the survivors that escape. There are depictions of neglect, religious abuse, sexual abuse, physical abuse, racialized violence, and homophobia. VERDICT A realistic, sometimes horrifying depiction of religious trauma. Recommended for readers who enjoy the works of Courtney Summers and Tiffany D. Jackson.--Kaetlyn Phillips

Publisher's Weekly Review

Via a deliberately plotted, nonlinear timeline, this potent speculative thriller from Oshiro (Each of Us a Desert) builds a harrowing image of a queer adoptee navigating religious trauma while combatting white saviorism. Seventeen-year-old Latinx-cued Manny and his older sister Elena don't remember a time when they weren't in foster care, until they are unexpectedly adopted by the white hyper-religious Sullivan family. But for unknown reasons, Manny is immediately sent off to--then subsequently kicked out of--Reconciliation, a religious camp run by a televangelist, and has been hitchhiking through California looking for Elena ever since. He's soon rescued by the Varelas, a nomadic Mexican family comprising kind former pastors Monica and Ricardo and their charming adoptive son Carlos, who reveal that religious trauma impels their own travels. After learning that a body that might be Elena's has been found outside Reconciliation, Manny and the Varelas embark toward the compound. Oshiro persuasively cultivates suspense through Manny's evasive flashbacks to his time back in Reconciliation, interspersed with scenes from the perspective of Eli, another camp participant. While retaining space for authentic representations of faith and spirituality, this breathtaking indictment of corrupted religion's consequences presents a standout, deeply felt portrait of a teenager's longing for connection. Ages 13--up. Agent: DongWon Song, Howard Morhaim Literary. (Mar.)