Out of Darkness
Ashley Hope Pérez
Holiday House
Published September 10, 2019

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About Out of Darkness

“This is East Texas, and there’s lines. Lines you cross, lines you don’t cross. That clear?” New London, TX. 1937. Naomi Vargas is Mexican American. Wash Fuller is Black. These teens know the town’s divisive racism better than anyone. But sometimes the attraction between two people is so powerful it breaks through even the most entrenched color lines. And the consequences can be explosive.

Naomi and Wash dare to defy the rules, and the New London school explosion serves as a ticking time bomb in the background. Can their love survive both prejudice and tragedy?

Race, romance, and family converge in this riveting novel that transplants Romeo and Juliet to a bitterly segregated Texas town. Includes a fascinating author’s note detailing the process of research and writing about voices that have largely been excluded from historical accounts.

A Printz Honor Book
A Booklist 50 Best YA Books of All Time Selection
A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year
A School Library Journal Best Book
Winner of the Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children’s Book Award

My Review

I read about this book in the anthology Banned Together edited by Ashley Hope Pérez, which I reviewed earlier this year. (Side note: I highly recommend that book. It’s got a lot of information about book banning from authors’ perspectives and offers tons of book recommendations.)

In the author’s note, Ashley Hope Pérez reminds readers that what happened in her novel are representative of real events in the American South in the 1930s. The school explosion really happened. The racism is real. This book gives voice to perspectives often left out of discussions about that time period.

The book contains some really grim scenes. From descriptions of the aftermath of the explosion to brief depictions of abuse to murder, the story holds some painful experiences. It doesn’t linger in those scenes or offer gratuitous details, though. Often, readers receive just enough information to understand what happened without placing the traumatic events front and center.

That said, the story contains so much beauty as well. Naomi, Wash, and the twins create a refuge of love in the woods near their homes. Though the world around them doesn’t see, respect, or understand the connections between them, these four treat one another with dignity and love.

In some ways, the story reminded me of Jennifer Donnelly’s debut, A Northern Light, which is set in 1906 in New York. Give this to readers who enjoy gritty historical fiction or stories by marginalized perspectives.

Content Notes

Racism, deaths of children, pregnancy loss, brief depictions of sexual assault.

Recommended for Ages 16 up.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Contains the use of racial slurs and racist comments. Scenes from the perspective of “The Gang” (a group of white boys from the school) sometimes objectify girls and share vague sexual fantasies. Strong profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Naomi remembers hearing her mom and her stepfather having sex in an adjacent room and her mom crying afterward. References to sexual abuse. Very brief descriptions of masturbation. Brief descriptions of sexual contact. One scene briefly depicts sexual assault.

Spiritual Content
References to church participation. Naomi’s step-dad has had a religious experience that prompted him to want to raise his two children. Naomi’s younger brother, Beto, opts to be baptized at the church. The church pastor counsels Henry to remain pure, stay away from alcohol, and devote himself to his family. He argues with a grieving parent about whether their child, who was not baptized in his church, will be waiting for them in heaven. He tries to intervene to stop a mob from lynching a man and his son.

Violent Content
The opening scene describes the aftermath of a school explosion. Rescue workers discover remains of victims and prepare for funerals. Brief depictions of abuse/rape. A mob burns a family’s home and property, intent on hanging a man and his son. A man brutally beats someone. Multiple people die of gunshot wounds. A man repeatedly threatens to harm a boy’s pet cat.

Naomi’s mom had several miscarriages. One happens while they’re sleeping next to one another, and Naomi recalls some vivid details about it.

Drug Content
Henry is an alcoholic. His pastor encourages him to avoid drinking, but Henry gradually returns to drinking more and more alcohol.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I borrowed a copy of this book from the public library. All opinions are my own.