Bibliographic Information:
Title: With the Fire on High
Author / Narrator: Elizabeth Acevedo
Publisher: Quill Tree Books
Copyright Date: May 2019
Listening Length: 7 hrs 27 mins
Reading Level / Interest Level: Min/Max grade levels 9-12 (Novelist).
Genre / Format: Realistic Fiction, Coming-of-Age / Audiobook
Themes: Teen Pregnancy, parenting, high school
Awards or Honors: 2020 Audie Award - Narration by Author
Plot Summary: Emoni is a single mother who is trying to survive her last year in high school while raising her baby girl and working part-time. Though Emoni is a talented cook, she does not think of cooking as a viable career path and instead settles for the gratification she gets from cooking for her loved ones. However, when the opportunity to take an elective cooking course at her high school comes up, she cannot pass it up. Though it adds a lot more work to her already overflowing plate (pun intended), Emoni is determined to do well in the class. She quickly learns that passion alone is not enough to become a great chef – will Emoni have the resilience to survive this course, senior year, her part-time job, and the chaos that is raising a child alone?
Author Background: Elizabeth Acevedo is the author of many award-winning books. Author of The Poet X which won National Book Award for Young People’s literature, the Michael L. Printz Award, the Pura Belpré Award, the Carnegie medal, the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, and the Walter Award. She wrote With the Fire on High which was named best book of the year by multiple platforms including New York Public Library, NPR, Publishers Weekly, and School Library Journal. Her latest book, Clap When You Land, made it to the Boston Globe–Horn Book Honor book and was a Kirkus Review finalist (Blue Flower Arts, n.d.).
Elizabeth Acevedo is an only child born and raised in New York City to Dominican immigrants. She got her BA in Performing Arts from George Washington University, and completed her MFA in Creative Writing from University of Maryland. She is a National Poetry Slam Champion. She lives in Washington, DC with her husband (Acevedo, n.d.).
"For any of us who've ever been told our stories are too small, or too ugly, or too little for high art...we are all deserving of poetry" (Acevedo, 2017).
Critical Evaluation for Books and Non-Print Items: This narration is incredibly engaging and will make you hungry! You really get to care about Emoni and want her to succeed. Though Emoni is a teen mom, the story does not focus on the pregnancy: we meet Emoni when her child is already two years old. This allowed the author to focus, not on the decision to keep the child (which is what a lot of books do), but on what makes Emoni, Emoni. She loves her child and does everything for her, but this love is not her only quality. Through Acevedo’s energetic narration, we get to know who Emoni is, her struggles, and we get to see her grow throughout her last year in high school. Overall, this audiobook is a great listen, and the story will offer the listener a glimpse into what it’s like to try and balance raising a child as a teenager while continuing to invest in your own dreams.
Creative Use for a Library Program: Book Club Dinner Party - Teens will meet weekly to discuss the book and will try out various Puerto Rican dishes mentioned in the story. On the last day, there will be a cook-off competition. Teens will form groups of three which will all cook the same dish (again from the story) and present to a panel of judges (library staff). Before the competition, teens will learn about culinary school and other opportunities working with food.
Speed-Round Book Talk or Short Book Trailer: Life is full of flavors and Emoni wants to taste every one of them so she can share them with those she loves. When an opportunity to enroll in a culinary elective comes up, Emoni decides to join, even if it means more work for her already overflowing plate. Her dreams of becoming a chef begin to drift as she navigates single-motherhood and her last year in high school Will Emoni be able to hold on to her dreams?
Potential Challenge Issues and Defense Preparation: The book is about a teenager navigating high school as a single mother. However, unlike most books about a similar subject, this story is not a "warning against teen pregnancy" or anything like that. Instead, the story focuses on what makes the mother of this story, Emoni, a unique human being with her own goals in life. Some parents may take issue with a story that does not demonize the teenage pregnancy and some may go so far as to accuse the author of "celebrating" teenage pregnancy. For these kinds of concerns, I would argue that not all books have to convey the same message and that the book's authentic approach is part of the reason I included it in the collection. I would argue that the book has an equally important message about single motherhood that isn't explored as much but also needs to be heard: the dreams of a mother don't have to die when raising a child and investing in these dreams should be celebrated.
Reason for Inclusion: This is a captivating, well-told story narrated by the author herself. She knows these characters and their motivations and struggles because they are her and this familiarity really comes through in the authenticity of her performance. This energy and life she brings to her story makes it easy to empathize with her characters. Engaging stories such as this one are a great way to show young readers how life can be for a young, teenage single mother while teaching them not to reduce a person to a single label before getting to truly know them.
Enhancements
Changing the conversation about teen pregnancy and motherhood