01/27/2014
In his intriguing second book, Klise (Love Drugged) tells the story of a Pakistani family rebuilding their lives after their apartment is destroyed in a fire set by an arsonist. Coming to their aid, students from sophomore Saba Khan’s prestigious Chicago high school plan a community fundraiser to help replace what her family lost. But when one of the items in the auction is reported missing—a collection of drawings supposedly painted by reclusive (real-life) outsider artist Henry Darger, worth half a million dollars—fingers are pointed and rumors circulate about who might have stolen it. Through emails, texts, journal entries, interview transcripts, newspaper clips, and official documents that pull in the perspectives of students, teachers, and others, Klise simultaneously reveals details about what might have transpired while allowing characters’ darker motives—prejudice, envy, greed—to emerge. Astute readers may solve the whodunits early on, but the question of “how far would be willing to go to make dreams come true” propels the book forward to its scandalous conclusion. Ages 12–up. Agent: Jennifer Laughran, Andrea Brown Literary Agency. (Apr.)
The Art of Secrets
Narrated by Dan Bittner, Denise Ashlynd, Anne Twomey, Heather Corrigan, Josh Rivedal
James KliseUnabridged — 5 hours, 51 minutes
The Art of Secrets
Narrated by Dan Bittner, Denise Ashlynd, Anne Twomey, Heather Corrigan, Josh Rivedal
James KliseUnabridged — 5 hours, 51 minutes
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Overview
When Saba Khan's apartment burns in a mysterious fire, possibly a hate crime, her Chicago high school rallies around her. Her family moves rent-free into a luxury apartment, Saba's Facebook page explodes, and she starts (secretly) dating a popular boy. Then a quirky piece of art donated to a school fund-raising effort for the Khans is revealed to be an unknown work by famous outsider artist Henry Danger, worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, and Saba's life turns upside down again. Should Saba's family have all that money? Or should it go to the students who found the art? Or to the school? And just what caused that fire?
Greed, jealousy, and suspicion create an increasingly tangled web as students and teachers debate who should get the money and begin to point fingers and make accusations. The true story of the fire that sets events in motion and what happens afterward gradually comes together in an innovative narrative made up of journal entries, interviews, articles, letters, text messages, and other documents.
Editorial Reviews
Where there’s smoke, there’s fire . . . and apparently, valuable art! When the Khan family’s home is mysteriously burned to the ground, the funds from a priceless painting come to their rescue. Through unique journal entries, articles, and interviews, a tangled web of unusual secrets unfolds.” —Teen Vogue “This quirky, mysterious read makes you feel like you’re watching the investigation unfold before your eyes because the clues are revealed through so many points of view . . . journals, interviews, articles, and text messages! And the surprise twist ending took our breath away.” —Justine magazine “This art mystery is that rare book that will be passed around by teens as well as teachers in the faculty lounge, discussed and dissected and immediately reread to scour for hidden clues and motivations. The incidents at Highsmith School will stay on readers’ minds long after the last page.” —Booklist, starred review “The Art of Secrets is part thoughtful novel and part edge-of-your-seat mystery. This story about a family of Pakistani immigrants whose apartment is destroyed by arson culminates in a shocking twist of an ending that will engross readers until the very last page.” —The Christian Science Monitor “A beautifully plotted mystery for teen readers tries to determine who started the fire that destroyed Saba's apartment.”—Houston Chronicle “This innovative mystery explores issues of secrecy, social class, greed, family, self-justification and the need to belong in one’s community. Saba’s internal and external struggles are realistically specific to her situation, but they will resonate with anyone who has ever felt like an outsider. As in life, the questions The Art of Secrets poses do not have easy answers, which is the book’s greatest strength.” —TeenReads.com “Relationships, secrets and lies aplenty for caper-loving fans.” —Kirkus Reviews “This is a book about the secret motivations that drive us all. Klise develops a set of complex characters, both teen and adult, who, because of the stolen artwork, must deal with their own beliefs about fairness, belonging, and truth. This mystery is well crafted and will leave readers guessing as to the identity of the culprit to the end. This is an excellent addition to collections where mysteries are popular and will give readers much to think and talk about.” —VOYA “Through emails, texts, journal entries, interview transcripts, newspaper clips, and official documents that pull in the perspectives of students, teachers, and others, Klise simultaneously reveals details about what might have transpired while allowing characters’ darker motives—prejudice, envy, greed—to emerge . . . The question of 'how far would [people] be willing to go to make [their] dreams come true' propels the book forward to its scandalous conclusion.” —Publishers Weekly
This art mystery is that rare book that will be passed around by teens as well as teachers in the faculty lounge, discussed and dissected and immediately reread to scour for hidden clues and motivations. The incidents at Highsmith School will stay on readers’ minds long after the last page.”
—Booklist [HC starred review]
“Where there’s smoke, there’s fire . . . and apparently, valuable art! When the Khan family’s home is mysteriously burned to the ground, the funds from a priceless painting come to their rescue. Through unique journal entries, articles, and interviews, a tangled web of unusual secrets unfolds.” —Teen Vogue
“This art mystery is that rare book that will be passed around by teens as well as teachers in the faculty lounge, discussed and dissected and immediately reread to scour for hidden clues and motivations. The incidents at Highsmith School will stay on readers’ minds long after the last page.” —Booklist, starred review
“Intriguing . . . The hairpin-turn twist ending will have surprised readers leafing back through the earlier parts of the book to search for foreshadowing, and it will provoke much discussion about who’s a good guy here and who’s a baddie.” —Bulletin for the Center for Children’s Books
“This darkly ambiguous, provocative novel highlights several themes worthy of discussion, including the destructive power of secrets and the politics of generosity.” —The Horn Book
“Greed, jealousy, and suspicion create a tangled web in this easy-to-read, creative and thought-provoking story set in the Chicago area with multicultural characters. Engrossing!” —Skipping Stones
“This is a book about the secret motivations that drive us all. Klise develops a set of complex characters, both teen and adult, who, because of the stolen artwork, must deal with their own beliefs about fairness, belonging, and truth. This mystery is well crafted and will leave readers guessing as to the identity of the culprit to the end. This is an excellent addition to collections where mysteries are popular and will give readers much to think and talk about.” —VOYA
“Relationships, secrets and lies aplenty for caper-loving fans.” —Kirkus Reviews
This art mystery is that rare book that will be passed around by teens as well as teachers in the faculty lounge, discussed and dissected and immediately reread to scour for hidden clues and motivations. The incidents at Highsmith School will stay on readers’ minds long after the last page.”
—Booklist [HC starred review]
04/01/2014
Gr 6–10—A suspicious fire, possibly a hate crime, destroys Saba Khan and her family's apartment and possessions. The Khans rely on the generosity of their neighbors and donations from Saba's school, a prestigious private school near downtown Chicago. Siblings Kendra and Kevin Spoon, two of the teen's classmates, decide an auction would be a great way to raise money to help the Pakistani American family. Soon the Spoons find a unique piece of artwork for the auction, and the event becomes big news that everyone wants in on. The art goes missing, and anyone involved in the auction is a suspect. This novel is told in variety of formats, including journal entries, email, text messages, newspaper stories, and police reports. Ten different characters share their points of view, leaving readers to work out exactly what happened and who might be guilty. Keeping up with all the different perspectives can be daunting, and some entries don't always contribute to the momentum. For fans of realistic fiction with plot twists, mysteries, and epistolary-type novels.—Natalie Struecker, Rock Island Public Library, IL
The structure of this book, composed of multiple viewpoints and documents, almost mandates an ensemble production. Its success is enhanced by the well-acted, skillful orchestration of its five narrators. Listeners will soon surmise the distress of a school that is locked in debate over the mysterious discovery of priceless, controversial art, which is later destroyed. Ethnicities, moods, ages, and personalities of the various characters are continually reflected against context-providing letters, texts and interviews. Plot questions about who should benefit from the insurance monies and who ruined the art underlie issues relating to greed, jealousy, dreams, and the marginalization of outsiders. S.W. © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine
2014-01-29
Relationships, secrets and lies aplenty for caper-loving fans. Here are the facts: Saba Khan's family is left homeless after a suspicious fire guts their small Chicago apartment. Saba's school community rallies around the reserved, observant tennis player and her family, and two fellow students, Kendra and Kevin Spoon, organize a charity auction on their behalf. Among the donations is a 10-page illustrated story by renowned Chicago self-taught artist Henry Darger (trash-picked in Darger's old neighborhood by Kendra and Kevin), which is promptly insured for $550,000 and then goes missing. Who torched the Khans' apartment? Who stole the artwork, and why? How did they do it? The answers unfold with briskly paced care in Klise's (Love Drugged, 2010) second novel, an apparent homage to the style of his sisters Kate and M. Sarah Klise's Regarding the Fountain (1998) and others. Through the interview transcripts, journal entries, text messages and overheard conversations of Saba and her father, as well as fellow students, faculty and administration at Highsmith School, readers get both bird's-eye and close-up views of the case, and careful readers will quickly unmask the culprit. Strong on plotting and art history but weak on believable voices (Saba herself comes through beautifully, but her father, Farooq, and Spanish exchange student Javier are particularly cringe-inducing), Klise doesn't quite pull off the trick his clever, appealing villains do. Enjoyable but inessential. (Mystery. 11-14)
Product Details
| BN ID: | 2940170041220 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | HighBridge Company |
| Publication date: | 04/22/2014 |
| Edition description: | Unabridged |
| Age Range: | 12 - 17 Years |
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