Badass(ish)

by Jaymie Heilman

Overview

Three teens set out to stop a pipeline, but their secrets, anxieties, and one very obnoxious ex-boyfriend might just explode their friendship first.

Reeling from an online Hatestorm after she blamed Alberta’s oil industry for a devastating forest fire, Davis wades back into climate activism to impress her two new friends and win back her ex-boyfriend. The novel is told from the points of view of the three main characters: Davis’ parents work for the oil company she is fighting against; Renzi knows what it’s like when climate change strikes back when her grandparents’ home in Puerto Rico is destroyed by hurricanes and Jae hasn’t found the right moment to share the truth about her growing feelings for another girl.

Tripped up by family pressures and their own secrets and lies, the teens’ anti-pipeline efforts may jeopardize their friendship and lose the people they love most unless they find their own ways to fight for what they believe in.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781553806905
Publisher:	Ronsdale Press
Publication date:	10/13/2023
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	260
File size:	2 MB
Age Range:	12 - 18 Years

About the Author

Jaymie Heilman grew up in Sherwood Park, Alberta. She lived in Wisconsin, Peru, and Nova Scotia before circling back home to Alberta, where she teaches Latin American and Caribbean history at the University of Alberta. She has written two books about the history of Peru. When she’s not reading or writing books for teens, she’s usually gardening, biking to the library, or dreaming about the ocean. She lives in Edmonton with her husband, son, and a ridiculous number of books. jaymieheilman.com 

Editorial Reviews

"Badass(ish) is as brave as it is thought-provoking and heart achingly real." -Carrie Firestone, author of Dress Coded and The First Rule of Climate Club

"Chock-full of humour and compassion, this is a novel about becoming oneself through confronting one's deepest fears and griefs, supported by the families we make for ourselves. Risking parental disapproval and social backlash, the central characters find the courage to stand up to the forces driving global warming." - Laurie Adkin, Editor, First World Petro-Politics: The Political Ecology and Governance of Alberta

"By portraying the (often uncomfortable) complexity of fossil fuels in Alberta, and tempering the vitriol with teenage humour, this book offers young adult readers a model for both accepting and liking their perfectly imperfect selves." - Kristine Kowalchuk, Environmental writer and founder of Edmonton River Valley Conservation Coalition

From the Publisher

2023-07-26
A lot can happen when young people take on the oil industry.

Alberta teens Davis Klein-Mah, Renzi Chan Cruz, and Jae Schmidt are fighting to protect the environment and their community from an oil pipeline. Unfortunately, local people rely on the pipeline for employment, complicating their task. Various personal circumstances also affect the girls’ involvement: Jae’s mother is a lawyer for Haus Oil, Davis’ parents are Haus Oil engineers, and Renzi is being pursued by Izzy Malone, a boy who’s a vocal activist—and Davis’ recent ex. The central characters are well-rounded, but they each deal with multiple issues that are not sufficiently developed. Davis struggles with PTSD after losing everything, including her beloved dog, in the Fort McMurray fire; she also endured a Twitter backlash for her environmental advocacy, and she struggles with the breakup with Izzy. Renzi is helping her abuelos in Puerto Rico, whose lives were devastated by hurricanes, and figuring out her feelings for Izzy. And Jae, who’s falling for another girl and is self-conscious about her wealth, has a power-hungry mother who’s oblivious to her daughter’s passion for the environment. The teens’ friendships and dedication are touching, but superfluous characters and multiple subplots detract from the power of the central storyline. Jae is white; Renzi is Chinese and Puerto Rican, and Davis is Chinese and implied white.

A thought-provoking and relevant, if overstuffed, tale. (author’s note, resources) (Fiction. 13-18)

Kirkus Reviews