Being Fishkill - Hardcover

Lehrer, Ruth

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0763684422 ISBN 13: 9780763684426

Publisher: Candlewick, 2017

Synopsis

Fishkill Carmel fends for herself, with her fists if need be — until a thwarted lunch theft introduces her to strange, sunny Duck-Duck and a chance for a new start.

Born in the backseat of a moving car, Carmel Fishkill was unceremoniously pushed into a world that refuses to offer her security, stability, love. At age thirteen, she begins to fight back. Carmel Fishkill becomes Fishkill Carmel, who deflects her tormenters with a strong left hook and conceals her secrets from teachers and social workers. But Fishkill’s fierce defenses falter when she meets eccentric optimist Duck-Duck Farina, and soon they, along with Duck-Duck’s mother, Molly, form a tentative family, even as Fishkill struggles to understand her place in it. This fragile new beginning is threatened by the reappearance of Fishkill’s unstable mother — and by unfathomable tragedy. Poet Ruth Lehrer’s young adult debut is a stunning, revelatory look at what defines and sustains “family.” And, just as it does for Fishkill, meeting Duck-Duck Farina and her mother will leave readers forever changed.

About this title

About the Author

Ruth Lehrer is a poet, author, and American Sign Language interpreter. She lives in the woods of western Massachusetts.

Reviews

Gr 6–10—Thirteen-year-old Fishkill Carmel has reinvented herself. She will no longer allow herself to be picked on, made fun of, or go hungry. She takes food from her classmates, but she gets more than she bargained for when she tries to take Duck-Duck Farina's lunch. Duck-Duck is fearless and adds Fishkill to her "gang" the GR. Soon Fishkill and Duck-Duck are inseparable and Fishkill's secrets start to come out. The protagonist has been on her own for months, thinking she killed her mother. Fishkill has kept this secret hidden, but finally tells Duck-Duck and eventually her mother, Molly. Molly immediately takes in Fishkill and begins to treat her like she's her own daughter. Just as Fishkill starts to feel comfortable in her life, junior high cliques and the sudden reappearance of Keely ruin everything. This is a difficult and devastating book to get through. Lehrer's debut is well written and touches upon tough subjects such as bullying, abuse, and teen pregnancy in a lyrical but age-appropriate way. Fishkill lives a hard life, but the book speaks to how schools and institutions handle students in poverty. VERDICT A great purchase for public libraries.—Faythe Arredondo, Tulare County Library, CA

Edition details

• Publisher: Candlewick
• Publication date: 2017
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0763684422
• ISBN 13: 9780763684426
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 320