Contemporary Realistic Fiction

The two books that I read in the CRF genre are In Plain Sight, written by Richard Jackson and Illustrated by Jerry Pinkney, and The Fault in Our Stars by John Green.

In Plain Sight is a charming book about a little girl, Sophie, and her grandfather. Every day she comes home from school and goes up to his room where he shares something he has lost. Sophie searches high and low until she is able to find it in plain sight. At the start of the book, I was expecting the story to be some sort of comment on the health and memory of the grandpa, perhaps a hint towards dementia. instead, I was happy to see that it instead hints that the grandfather is purposely hiding his items to carry on the game with Sophie. Pickney's beautiful watercolor paintings give hints that the grandpa is in on the game, namely his winks and the back flapjacket's illustration. In Plain Sight is not a social issue or coming of age story, it is a simple, heartwarming, and beautiful story about a young girl and her relationship with her elderly grandfather. It is very touching to see their game of hide and seek play out.

The Fault in Our Stars is a CRF novel that uses the theme of relationships and romance to drive the story forward. In the simplest terms, it is a book about two teenagers falling in love. While this is a common theme in many YA books it adds in beautiful layers about childhood and adult cancer, family relationships, as well as a love of literature and representation in literature. When I first read this book in 2012 it was a fast and emotional read. I was caught up in the sadness (which I do not do well with, by the way; it is very rare for me to read any books that are known to make you cry), but as I'm rereading it I'm finding that it is the relationships away from Agustus that help Hazel along her way. I find that I'm touched more by her relationships with her parents, her friend, and her author idol that are a catalyst for her journey into her next stage of life. Maybe this is due to the fact that I'm not the intended teenage audience anymore, or perhaps since I'm doing a slower read through it, but whatever the cause is I'm happy that I've found some new layers and depth to a beautifully told story.