Overview

An enchanting novel in verse, Call Me Athena captures one young woman's struggle for independence, equality, and identity as the daughter of Greek and French immigrants in tumultuous 1930s Detroit. Mary lives in a tiny apartment in Detroit in the 1930s with her Greek and French immigrant parents, her brothers, and her twin sister, and she questions why her parents ever came to America. She yearns for true love, to own her own business, and to be an independent, modern American woman--much to the chagrin of her parents, who want her to be a ""good Greek girl."" Mary's story is peppered with flashbacks to her parents' childhoods in Greece and northern France; their stories connect with Mary as they address issues of arranged marriage, learning about independence, and yearning to grow beyond one's own culture. Though Call Me Athena is written from the perspective of three profoundly different narrators, it has a wide-reaching message: It takes courage to fight for tradition and heritage, as well as freedom, love, and equality. Call Me Athena: Girl from Detroit is a beautifully written novel in verse loosely based on author Colby Cedar Smith's paternal grandmother, creating a historically accurate portrayal of life as an immigrant during the Great Depression, hunger strikes, and violent riots.

Full Product Details

Author:   Colby Cedar Smith
Publisher:   Andrews McMeel Publishing
Imprint:   Andrews McMeel Publishing
Dimensions:   Width: 15.50cm , Height: 4.30cm , Length: 23.10cm
Weight:   0.771kg
ISBN:  

9781524865603

ISBN 10:   1524865605
Pages:   576
Publication Date:   17 August 2021
Recommended Age:   From 14 years
Audience:   General/trade ,  Young adult ,  General ,  Teenage / Young adult
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Temporarily unavailable  
The supplier advises that this item is temporarily unavailable. It will be ordered for you and placed on backorder. Once it does come back in stock, we will ship it out to you.

Table of Contents

Reviews

"""A compelling story of the tension between children and their immigrant parents and the sometimes conflicting dreams."" (School Library Journal) ""A young adult stunner lands in Detroit"" (Hour Detroit) ""Exquisite. A beautiful novel in verse."" (Ruta Sepetys, #1 New York Times bestselling author and Carnegie Medal winner) Awards and Recognitions JUNIOR LIBRARY GUILD GOLD STANDARD SELECTION AMERICAN BOOKSELLERS SEPT/OCT 2021 KIDS' INDIE NEXT LIST 2021 GOODREADS CHOICE AWARDS POETRY NOMINEE 2022 CYBILS AWARD FINALIST 2022 MICHIGAN NOTABLE BOOK 2022 INDEPENDENT PUBLISHER (IPPY) BOOK AWARDS ðY ^ SILVER MEDAL FOR YA FICTION ðY +GOLD MEDAL FOR AUDIOBOOK FICTION 2022 SILVER NAUTILUS AWARD - LYRIC PROSE CATEGORY 2022 KID'S BOOK CHOICE FINALIST - BEST STELLAR STORYTELLER 2022 MIDWEST BOOK AWARD -- FICTION, YA (Awards) Call Me Athena is a kaleidoscope of moments from the past, yet its real strength is the way it takes such different times, places, and stories and shows how commonalities like love, grief, and hope can connect a family over the course of generations. (Booklist) ""A novel in verse, Colby Cedar Smith's Call Me Athena follows the daughter of immigrants in Detroit, with flashbacks to her parents' native France and Greece."" (Forbes) ""This story of an immigrant girl growing up in Detroit in the 1930s hits every mark. Woven into the story are her parents' histories and all the love and loss the family has faced. It will tug your heartstrings."" (American Booksellers Association) Highly Recommended Review; ""By writing this story as poetry told by the characters, Smith's language is strong, descriptive, and so full of emotion that readers will feel the overwhelming loss of a sibling, the stomach-turning events of the war, the fear of an arranged marriage, the hostility aimed at immigrants, and the political unrest of the times."" (School Library Connection) A strong debut written with heart and strength. (Kirkus Reviews) CALL ME ATHENA is a stunning and gorgeous debut from Colby Cedar Smith. Untamed and beautifully wild, this novel in verse careens from the hilltops of France to the olive groves of Greece to the bustling city streets of Detroit. Full of love & images that conjure family, hope, hardship and holding onto our dreams when things fall away from us. With lush, lyrical language, vibrant characters & a storyline that will keep you enthralled from beginning to end, this is a book that stays with you long after the last poem. I love this story. (Ellen Hagan, co-author of Watch Us Rise and author of Reckless, Glorious Girl)"

"Highly Recommended Review; ""By writing this story as poetry told by the characters, Smith's language is strong, descriptive, and so full of emotion that readers will feel the overwhelming loss of a sibling, the stomach-turning events of the war, the fear of an arranged marriage, the hostility aimed at immigrants, and the political unrest of the times."" (School Library Connection) ""A compelling story of the tension between children and their immigrant parents and the sometimes conflicting dreams."" (School Library Journal) ""A young adult stunner lands in Detroit"" (Hour Detroit) ""Exquisite. A beautiful novel in verse."" (Ruta Sepetys, #1 New York Times bestselling author and Carnegie Medal winner) Awards and Recognitions JUNIOR LIBRARY GUILD GOLD STANDARD SELECTION AMERICAN BOOKSELLERS SEPT/OCT 2021 KIDS' INDIE NEXT LIST 2021 GOODREADS CHOICE AWARDS POETRY NOMINEE 2022 CYBILS AWARD FINALIST 2022 MICHIGAN NOTABLE BOOK 2022 INDEPENDENT PUBLISHER (IPPY) BOOK AWARDS SILVER MEDAL FOR YA FICTION GOLD MEDAL FOR AUDIOBOOK FICTION 2022 SILVER NAUTILUS AWARD - LYRIC PROSE CATEGORY 2022 KID'S BOOK CHOICE FINALIST - BEST STELLAR STORYTELLER 2022 MIDWEST BOOK AWARD -- FICTION, YA (Awards) Call Me Athena is a kaleidoscope of moments from the past, yet its real strength is the way it takes such different times, places, and stories and shows how commonalities like love, grief, and hope can connect a family over the course of generations. (Booklist) ""A novel in verse, Colby Cedar Smith's Call Me Athena follows the daughter of immigrants in Detroit, with flashbacks to her parents' native France and Greece."" (Forbes) ""This story of an immigrant girl growing up in Detroit in the 1930s hits every mark. Woven into the story are her parents' histories and all the love and loss the family has faced. It will tug your heartstrings."" (American Booksellers Association) A strong debut written with heart and strength. (Kirkus Reviews) CALL ME ATHENA is a stunning and gorgeous debut from Colby Cedar Smith. Untamed and beautifully wild, this novel in verse careens from the hilltops of France to the olive groves of Greece to the bustling city streets of Detroit. Full of love & images that conjure family, hope, hardship and holding onto our dreams when things fall away from us. With lush, lyrical language, vibrant characters & a storyline that will keep you enthralled from beginning to end, this is a book that stays with you long after the last poem. I love this story. (Ellen Hagan, co-author of Watch Us Rise and author of Reckless, Glorious Girl)"

Exquisite. A beautiful novel in verse. (Ruta Sepetys, #1 New York Times bestselling author and Carnegie Medal winner) CALL ME ATHENA is a stunning and gorgeous debut from Colby Cedar Smith. Untamed and beautifully wild, this novel in verse careens from the hilltops of France to the olive groves of Greece to the bustling city streets of Detroit. Full of love & images that conjure family, hope, hardship and holding onto our dreams when things fall away from us. With lush, lyrical language, vibrant characters & a storyline that will keep you enthralled from beginning to end, this is a book that stays with you long after the last poem. I love this story. (Ellen Hagan, co-author of Watch Us Rise and author of Reckless, Glorious Girl)

Author Information

Colby Cedar Smith grew up in the Midwest, and she still dreams of the cold northern woods and the smell of lake water. She holds degrees from Colorado College and Harvard University. She has been a finalist for the The Iowa Review Poetry Award, the New Letters Poetry Prize, and the Colorado Prize for Poetry, and a semifinalist for the 92Y ""Discovery"" Boston Review Poetry Prize. In 2020, Colby received a NJ Individual Artist Fellowship in Poetry. Her poems have been published in Bellevue Literary Review, Harper Palate, Mid-American Review, Pleiades, Potomac Review, Saranac Review, and The Iowa Review. Colby lives with her husband and two children in Hopewell, New Jersey, and teaches creative writing at the Arts Council of Princeton.You can read more of her work at www.colbycedarsmith.com.

Tab Content 6

Author Website:  

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

No review item found!

Add your own review!

Countries Available

All regions