About this item
Highlights
- Award-winning author Francisco X. Stork revisits some of the themes and ideas that made Marcelo in the Real World such an unforgettable novel.Alberto's life isn't easy: He's an undocumented immigrant from Mexico who lives with his sister's abusive boyfriend--but he'd always accepted his place in the world.
- 320 Pages
- Young Adult Fiction, People & Places
Description
About the Book
Includes mental health and crisis resources.Book Synopsis
Award-winning author Francisco X. Stork revisits some of the themes and ideas that made Marcelo in the Real World such an unforgettable novel.Alberto's life isn't easy: He's an undocumented immigrant from Mexico who lives with his sister's abusive boyfriend--but he'd always accepted his place in the world. Until he starts hearing the voice of a man called Captain America, a voice that wants him to achieve more, no matter the cost.
Grace has it all: She has a supportive boyfriend, she's on track to be valedictorian, and she's sure to go to the college of her dreams. Still, nothing feels right to her any more after the divorce of her parents, and feels she needs something more.
When Alberto and Grace meet, they have an immediate and electric connection. But when Alberto is present at the scene of a terrible crime, he becomes a suspect. And with his developing schizophrenia, he's not even sure he believes in his own innocence.
Can Grace find a way to prove Alberto's innocence to himself and the world?
This is a page-turning thriller and a sensitive story about mental health, love, and community that will appeal to anyone who has struggled with their place in the world, from award-winning author Francisco X. Stork.
Review Quotes
Praise for I Am Not Alone:
A Junior Library Guild Selection
A Bank Street Best Book of the Year
★ "An affecting, deeply emotional story. An important book." -- Booklist, starred review
★ "Alberto's suspected schizophrenia makes him heartbreakingly susceptible to both the best and worst of humanity. An illuminatingly powerful story about mental illness, young love, faith, and hope." -- Kirkus Reviews, starred review
★ "This taut and suspensefully plotted emotional drama offers a nuanced, poignant story of friendship in the face of adversity." -- The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, starred review
"The narrative's high-stakes conflicts are front and center, [but] it's the sheer sweetness of Alberto and Grace's love story that sets the tone of this hopeful read." -- Publishers Weekly
"An intricate hunt for truth through the maze of mental illness. Stork's resonating, empathic fiction once again provides audiences with convincing reasons to believe "I am not alone." -- Shelf Awareness
About the Author
Francisco X. Stork (he/him) emigrated from Mexico at the age of nine with his mother and his adoptive father. I Am Not Alone is his tenth novel. Other novels include: Marcelo in the Real World, recipient of the Schneider Family Book Award, The Last Summer of the Death Warriors, which received the Elizabeth Walden Award, The Memory of Light, recipient of the Tomás Rivera Award, Disappeared, which received the Young Adult Award from the Texas Institute of Letters and was a Walter Dean Myers Award Honor Book and Illegal, recipient of the In the Margins Award, the Young Adult Award from the Texas Institute of Letters and the International Latino Book Award. On the Hook published in 2021, received four starred reviews and was the recipient of the International Latino Book Award.