This author delves into the complexities of the human experience through a unique narrative voice. Their works are recognized for their profound psychological depth and poetic language, drawing readers into richly imagined worlds. Through their storytelling, the author often poses thought-provoking questions about identity, memory, and the search for meaning in contemporary life. Their approach is both intimate and universal, ensuring their writing resonates with a wide array of readers.
Told over the course of forty-eight hours, seventeen-year-old Tony heads back to his old life in Des Moines, Washington after being released from a youth detention center, but toxic old relationships and unforseen challenges make staying on the straight-and-narrow nearly impossible.
Sam has the rules of slackerhood down: Don't be late to class. Don't ever look the teacher in the eye. Develop your blank stare. Since his mom left, he has become an expert in the art of slacking, especially since no one at his new school gets his intense passion for the music of the Pacific Northwest—Nirvana, Hole, Sleater-Kinney. Then his English teacher begins a slam poetry unit and Sam gets paired up with the daunting, scarred, clearly-a-gang-member Luis, who happens to sit next to him in every one of his classes. Slacking is no longer an option—Luis will destroy him. Told in Sam's raw voice and interspersed with vivid poems, Jumped In by Patrick Flores-Scott is a stunning debut novel about differences, friendship, loss, and the power of words.