Hold Tight, Don’t Let Go

In this formidable first novel, 15-year-old narrator Magdalie loses everything after the Haitian earthquake of 2010 and is forced to rebuild along with her country. This well-adjusted schoolgirl goes from living in Port-au-Prince with her close cousin, Nadine, under the watchful care of Nadine’s mother, to finding her own way in a camp after her aunt’s death and Nadine’s emigration to the United States (“Since January 12, every good-bye feels like it might be forever”). Wagner effectively and unsentimentally highlights the emotional and economic aftermath of the disaster as Magdalie grieves the loss of her family; realizes she cannot afford school; adjusts to life with her reluctant guardian and uncle, Tonton Élie; and begins to accept that Nadine is unlikely to send for her as promised. Wagner’s portrait of Haitian culture is particularly compelling, and her descriptions of the settings of the city and Tonton Élie’s country hometown are lush, despite the nation’s dire circumstances. An epilogue, set in 2020, resolves the story a bit neatly, but this strong heroine and her will to survive triumph. Ages 14–up. (Jan.)