The First Part Last
Johnson, Angela
Micaiah Matson
3.5.14
7-2
Setting
- The main setting is New York in a small suburban city. This is Bobby's home. He lives here with his mother, Mary.
- Brooklyn, New York is the next setting. Bobby moves here with Feather to live with his dad, Fred, after learning that Nia was in an irreversible vegetative coma.
- The last setting is Heaven, Ohio. Bobby and Feather move here to live near his brother Paul after losing Nia.
Bobby
16 year old boy who becomes a father. His girlfriend is Nia Wilkens. His father owns Mineo's, a small restaurant in the small city where they live. In the beginning, Bobby lives with his mother, Mary. Then he and Feather move to Brooklyn to live with his dad, Fred. He is also African American.
Nia
16 year old girl who becomes a mother. After having Feather, she goes into an irreversible vegetative coma. She is white.
Feather
K-Boy & J.L.
Summary
16 year old Bobby's life turns upside down when his girlfriend, Nia Wilkens, announces she is pregnant. For 9 months, Bobby and Nia go to many different doctors appointments and counselors. At first, the two teenagers want to put the baby up for adoption when it's born. When Nia has Feather, she goes into an irreversible vegetative coma right after. Bobby decides to keep her because she reminds him of Nia. He then has to take care of Feather on his own. He gets up in the middle of the night with her and is very protective. The only time he gets a break is when he takes Feather to the babysitter so he can go to school. Bobby and Feather live in a small suburban city with Bobby's mom, Mary. When his brother Paul comes to visit, Paul explains how Heaven, Ohio is a great place to raise kids. Bobby thinks that he and Feather should move there. After some thought, he decides to move to Brooklyn to live with his dad. Bobby and Feather live in Brooklyn for a while, then he decides to move to Heaven. Bobby gets an apartment near Paul's house. Feather grows up here. Bobby just wishes that Nia could have been there, too.
Michael L. Printz Award
The Michael L. Printz Award is named after a high school librarian, Michael L. Printz. The award honors the best book written for teens. It is sponsored by Booklist Magazine. The Printz Award was inaugurated in 2000 for 1999 publications. The award is aimed toward the young adult genre, for ages 12-18. The genres that this award goes to include: non-fiction, fiction, poetry, and anthologies. It is for a book that "exemplifies literary excellence in young adult literature". To be eligible to receive this award, books must be published between January 1st and December 31st of the year prior to the announcement of the award.
About Michael L. Printz
Michael L. Printz was a librarian at Topeka West High School, in Topeka Kansas. He was an active member of YALSA (Young Adult Library Services Association). He dedicated his life to ensuring students has access to good literature. Printz encouraged writers to focus on the young adult audience and created an author-in-residence program for his students. He retired in 1994. He then died at the age of 56 in 1996.