★ 02/22/2021
Set in a close-knit community in Austin, Tex., debut author Kemp’s exquisite YA contemporary romance follows two Latinx teens after their lives intersect at a beloved neighborhood restaurant. When 18-year-old Penelope “Pen” Prado makes the difficult decision to come clean to her Mexican American parents about having skipped a semester’s worth of community college classes, as well as her real dream of owning a bakery, she is promptly fired from her father’s restaurant, Nacho’s Tacos. Mean-while, 18-year-old Alejandro “Xander” Amaro, a new hire at Nacho’s, longs to find his absent father and lives with constant worry about his own undocumented status. When Xander runs into Pen on his first—and her last—day working at Nacho’s, romance ensues. Told in the protagonists’ alternating, refreshingly candid voices (“So I have to decide what’s scarier: living a life that doesn’t belong to me, or losing the one I love”), Kemp’s novel serves up finely rendered, stirring character arcs for both, as well as an intimate portrait of two teens grappling with mental health, complicated family relationships, and newfound love. Much like Elizabeth Acevedo’s With the Fire on High, Kemp has created a truly special combination of deliciously described food, expressive prose, and dreamy romance. Ages 14–up. Agent: Andrea Morrison, Writers House. (Apr.)
A Pura Belpré Honor BookYALSA’s 2022 Best Fiction for Young Adults listKirkusReviews Best Books of 2021 listPublishers Weekly Best Books of 2021 listNew York Public Library Best of 2021 listKirkus Reviews Best YA of 2021 listMilwaukee County Teen Book Award, NomineeGeorgia Peach Book Award Nominee 2022-2023TAYSHAS High School 2022 reading listEliot Rosewater HS Book Award NomineeeGeorgia Peach Teen Readers 2022-2023 "Wonderfully realized characters, a vibrant setting, and so much more. I loved this."—Melina Marchetta, award-winning author of Jellicoe Road
"Pen and Xander will steal your heart. One to savor."
—Laura Taylor Namey, New York Times bestselling author of A Cuban Girl's Guide to Tea and Tomorrow
"A bold new voice to watch in children's fiction."
—Eric Smith, author of Don't Read the Comments
"An affecting, timely debut....Add it to your 2021 TBR list immediately."
—Liz Lawson, author of The Lucky Ones
"Like the delicious food and decadent desserts described within its pages, Kemp's debut explores the often bitter and sweet complexity of family, new love, and what it means to find home. "
—Mia García, author of The Resolutions
"Pen and Xander's unforgettable love story refuses to sugarcoat difficult topics, but instead deftly explores them with a thoughtful hand. A cathartic read and new favorite author."
— Nina Moreno, author of Don't Date Rosa Santos
"Fans of Elizabeth Acevedo’s With the Fire on High will cherish Xander and Pen’s love story and Pen’s passion for food. This stellar debut offers a cathartic take on a relationship between a father and daughter. Authentic flavor inside and out."—Kirkus Reviews, starred review
“Kemp’s novel serves up finely rendered, stirring character arcs…as well as an intimate portrait of two teens grappling with mental health, complicated family relationships, and newfound love.”
—Publishers Weekly, starred review
"Lush imagery celebrates Mexican culture and depicts how food can bring people together. . . . not to be missed."—School Library Journal
"Students will enjoy the food descriptions and community culture that lend the story a sense of authenticity and believability."—School Library Connection
"Recommended for readers who enjoy strong stories about found families, expectations, and food."
—Booklist
12/01/2020
Gr 9 Up—In Austin, TX, Pen Prado's Mexican American family runs Nacho's Tacos, a popular place to eat and gather and the community hub that neighborhood residents turn to in times of need. Pen's father, Ignacio, can always be counted on for a meal when someone is hungry, quick money for a small job, or steady employment for people with undocumented statuses. Pen has a passion for cooking and dreams of running the restaurant when her father retires, but her parents insist Pen finish nursing school. When they find out that she has been skipping classes, they fire her from the restaurant and let her know that she may continue to live at home only if she finishes school. Xander lives with his abuelo and lives in fear of his undocumented status being revealed. He has worked with immigration lawyers and private detectives in hopes of finding his father, but so far doesn't even know if he's alive. When Xander, who is from Mexico, takes a job at Nacho's Tacos, he finds a place to belong and a family as his relationship with Pen progresses, but those things are threatened by J.P., or El Martillo, a loan shark who has corrupt members of law enforcement on his payroll. In this coming-of-age story told in multiple perspectives, Pen struggles to deal with familial expectations while chasing her dreams of cooking, the heady emotions of first love, and mental health issues stemming from anxiety and depression. Secondary characters are well developed and the plot is a balance of tension, humor, romance, and fear. Lush imagery celebrates Mexican culture and depicts how food can bring people together. VERDICT This #OwnVoices YA contemporary debut is not to be missed; recommended for most collections.—Samantha Lumetta, P.L. of Cincinnati and Hamilton Cty., OH
Andy Aragon and Arami Malaise's seamless alternating narration creates a dazzling portrait of Pen and Xander, a young Latinx couple, and the Mexican-American community in Austin, Texas, where they live. This debut is an affecting coming-of-age story and a splendid romance, as well as a trenchant exploration of father-child relations, immigration, and the impact of crime upon a community. Malaise gives a stunning performance as the tough-on-the-outside but inwardly sensitive Pen. Aragon will move listeners with the innate decency of Xander, whose challenges include his undocumented status in the U.S. Pen and Xander share a love of cooking, and the descriptions of the dishes they prepare flavor this audio production. M.J. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine
Andy Aragon and Arami Malaise's seamless alternating narration creates a dazzling portrait of Pen and Xander, a young Latinx couple, and the Mexican-American community in Austin, Texas, where they live. This debut is an affecting coming-of-age story and a splendid romance, as well as a trenchant exploration of father-child relations, immigration, and the impact of crime upon a community. Malaise gives a stunning performance as the tough-on-the-outside but inwardly sensitive Pen. Aragon will move listeners with the innate decency of Xander, whose challenges include his undocumented status in the U.S. Pen and Xander share a love of cooking, and the descriptions of the dishes they prepare flavor this audio production. M.J. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine
★ 2021-01-26
Two Latinx young adults in Austin, Texas, find love at the crossroads of family, food, and self-discovery.
Eighteen-year-old Penelope Prado loves working at Nacho’s Tacos, her father’s Mexican restaurant, and dreams of eventually having her own bakery, but her parents—especially her stern father—want more for her. Xander Amaro is a new hire at the restaurant who gets past Pen’s tough exterior with his vulnerability and care. He is from Puebla, Mexico, and undocumented; his father left for the U.S. when he was a boy, and his mother sent him to the States to live with his abuelo. As he holds out hope of locating his father, he is welcomed by the vibrant crew at Nacho’s that works, parties, and pranks together. When a lie sends Pen away from her family home and the restaurant, she must face forced independence while managing her mental health. Kemp’s evocative writing weaves a tender love story set in a tightknit working-class neighborhood that vibrates with life despite local businesses’ ongoing struggles with El Martillo, a dangerous loan shark. Fans of Elizabeth Acevedo’s With the Fire on High (2019) will cherish Xander and Pen’s love story and Pen’s passion for food. This stellar debut offers a cathartic take on a relationship between a father and daughter.
Authentic flavor inside and out. (Fiction. 14-adult)
