cover image The Price of Loyalty

The Price of Loyalty

Mike Castan. Holiday House, $17.95 (160p) ISBN 978-0-8234-2268-5

Debut novelist Castan offers a solidly written, if predictable and largely consequence-free story of one boy's efforts to avoid succumbing to gang life. Seventh-grader Manny loves hanging out with his longtime buddies, and when their clique gets called "The Conquistadors," he assumes it's all in good fun. But when his friends%E2%80%94led by tough kids Hernan and Cisco%E2%80%94start causing fights, disrupting class, and shaving their heads, Manny feels obligated to go along with them (although he conveniently avoids hurting anyone himself). He is torn between the friends he's had forever, the anti-gang opinions of new girlfriend Henrietta (curiously, none of the girls in the novel have any gang involvement), and Manny's "abuela," a former babysitter taking care of him while his parents are in Mexico. These tensions only intensify when the gang asks him to procure drugs from a classmate. Because Manny avoids conflicts and refrains from committing any violence himself, readers may question his driving need for personal absolution; Castan delivers a straightforward story that deprives its protagonist's eventual redemption of significant meaning. Ages 12%E2%80%93up. (Aug.)