The Free Verse Society

Teens seeking a fresh start contend with adolescent pregnancy, financial insecurity, parental absence, and substance reliance in Adjoa’s introspective debut. After placing her baby for adoption, high school junior and poet Jae determines to keep her past private, leaving her mother behind in Atlanta to move into her stern uncle’s house in Delray Beach, Fla. Joining her new school’s poetry club nets Jae promising friendships—and an unwelcome reintroduction to Derek, a popular soccer player she clashed with on her first day. Forced into the club as punishment following a breaking-and-entering incident, Derek is desperate to keep his participation—as well as the reason behind his B&E—secret. In preparation for the club’s upcoming open mic night, Derek and Jae are partnered to search for an event space. Despite their initial reluctance, the pair’s attraction for each other grows with every venue they visit. But their hesitance to share their secrets for fear of social ostracization jeopardizes their relationship. Sharply rendered poems by various characters are interspersed throughout the protagonists’ compelling and unique alternating narration, and Jae and Derek’s electric chemistry leaps off the page. Jae is of Ghanaian heritage; Derek is half Indian and half white. Ages 14–up. Agent: Lindsey Auld, Writers House. (Mar.)