Peña, M. de la. (2010). I will save you. New York, NY: Delacorte Press. ISBN: 978-0-385-73827-9. 306 pp.
Kidd escapes Horizons, a group home, to work for Mr. Red as his maintenance assistant for the summer camps being held at a beach in California. In the course of enjoying his freedom, new friendships, and the ability to work, he instantly falls in love with Olivia, one of the summer campers. However, Kidd’s dark past catches up with him, and he has to save Olivia from the life he thought he left behind.
Critical Analysis
In I Will Save You, the protagonist Kidd tells the story of the summer he spent working as a maintenance assistant. Through simple story telling and journal entries, readers learn about Kidd’s take on life and the complex characters he meets that summer. This novel is realistic fiction at its finest in that there are many issues brought up through the course of the narrative that cause the reader to ponder about real life situations. For example, Kidd wonders, “Were people who they were ‘cause of their genes, or was it more to do with where they were born, and who their parents were, and what they saw growing up?” The story addresses drug addiction, alcoholism, beauty, abuse, death, social class differences, foster care, mental illness, and much more.
This story is a page turner due to readers wanting to learn more about pieces of the puzzle of Kidd’s life such as the reason why Kidd pushes Devon off the cliff, the explanation for Kidd’s foster care, and the details on how Horizons is different from an ordinary foster care institution. The characters are real and are an asset to the overall story because they possess positive and negative qualities. For example, Mr. Red is a very caring person and loves Kidd, but he is battling alcoholism and is a womanizer. This story is grim and depressing, but the summer beach setting serves to lighten the mood. Although some readers may guess the big reveal before reaching the end, I Will Save You is a good read that will remain with you long after you are done reading it.
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