This review will appear in the December 2007 issue of School Library Journal :
POWERS, J. L. The Confessional. 294p. CIP. Knopf/Borzoi. 2007. Tr $16.99. ISBN 978-0-375-83872-9; PLB $19.99. ISBN 978-0-375-93872-6. LC 2006024253.
Gr 10 Up“When their friend Mac is murdered, seven confused, angry Catholic school classmates seek answers in El Paso, TX, a town defined by boundaries, cultural tensions, and strict allegiances. In looking for the killer, the boys end up embodying Mac himself, who questioned everything: God, his own uncontrollable rage, terrorism, and the volatile relationships between Mexicans and Americans. Powers delves deeply into the psyche of each of the boys, who narrate chapters and fuel the book’s momentum. Teens will see themselves in these realistic characters, each struggling with unique challenges. Isaiah tries to make peace in the wars raging in his home and school; Greg looks for someone to pay for his best friend’s death; Josh uses drugs to muddle his memory; Dan desperately hides his homosexuality from his best buddy; Alex, the invisible outsider, plays detective; and Jim Hall wrestles unfathomable demons. Through them, readers confront the complicated inner worlds of young people today. The residual effects of religion, immigration, and dysfunctional fathers crowd these boys’ minds. Although their language sometimes seems improbably elevated, these characters will reach mature teens eager to hear their own preoccupations echoed and, perhaps, clarified. They might also notice how this distinctly modern vision of adolescence morphs silkily into a clever noir adaptation. As Alex makes rounds visiting suspects, he slips into the clipped speech and hawkish manner of a fedora-wearing private eye. Murder, mystery, and detection pulse through this complex book, keeping readers feverishly wondering who done it and why. “Shelley Huntington, New York Public Library
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