Assessment:
Plot/Idea: Pescadero is a quietly moving novel that centers on 14-year-old Hilde, who relocates with her mother and brother from Wisconsin to the titular Northern California town. An additional narrative focuses on a migrant worker and his family, whose story becomes engagingly intertwined with Hilde's.
Prose: Brady prose sensitively examines Hilde's feelings of disorientation as she adjusts to life in California, while sections devoted to Gabriel and Joaquín’s attempts to reunite with his sibling, are raw and impactful.
Originality: Brady integrates familiar coming-of-age themes, while the Northern California setting–and what it represents–is portrayed effectively via multiple lenses.
Character/Execution: Hilde grows from a girl grappling with a sudden relocation and the loss of the family she knew to a wiser, more outwardly compassionate individual. The story of Gabriel and Joaquín plays out movingly and, while Brady doesn't imply Hilde's circumstances are directly comparable, the author makes some acute observations about the human need to find shared community and reestablish roots.
Date Submitted: May 29, 2024
Starred Review:
Brady treats heavy topics with gentle care while not shying away from hard realities. [She] allows readers to experience the emotional beats while also maintaining a fast pace, even during the most difficult moments. At one point, Ethan tells Hilde, “It just seems like to do the right thing, sometimes you gotta do the wrong thing”; each of the characters find themselves forever changed after doing “the wrong thing,” and readers are right there with them. ...An earnest, honest, and engaging tale of broken and repaired families.
