Looking for Lucie

By Author / Illustrator

Amanda Addison

Genre

Friends and family

Age range(s)

14+

Publisher

Neem Tree Press

ISBN

9781911107682

Format

Paperback / softback

Published

18-04-2024

Synopsis

Looking for Lucie is a contemporary YA novel that explores identity, self-discovery, and newfound friendship as an 18-year-old girl sets out to uncover her ethnic heritage and family history.

"Where are you really from?"It's a question every brown girl in a white-washed town is familiar with, and one that Lucie has never been able to answer. All she knows is that her mother is white, she's never met her father, and she looks nothing like the rest of her family. She can't even talk about it because everyone says it shouldn't matter!

Well, it matters to Lucie and-with her new friend Nav, who knows exactly who he is, she's determined to find some answers.

What do you do when your entire existence is a question with no answer?You do a DNA test.

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Reviews

Identity, heritage and belonging are hot topics in YA fiction and Amanda Addison fulsomely addresses them in her new book, Looking for Lucie.

Lucie sticks out like a sore thumb in her white family and white-washed town. She’s never met her father, has no information about him and no-one seems to want to enlighten her. But new friend Nav takes a no-nonsense approach and is soon encouraging Lucie to investigate her identity, no matter what anyone says.

What follows is an exploration of families and their secrets and finally a sense of belonging for Lucie. The book is full of likeable characters and Lucie's is an authentic if slightly naïve voice. The slightly expository tone won't suit everyone but there is much to enjoy here. Multiple narrators keep the story moving and there's a warm-hearted, family-centric feel to the book. A contemporary tale of identity and self-discovery.

272 pages / Reviewed by Clare Wilkins, school librarian