05/02/2022
Seventeen-year-old Bliss has settled into her life in predominantly white rural Lakeville, Ill., after her mother took off five years ago to pursue a modeling career in Japan. When Mama suddenly returns, though, Bliss is convinced she’s “finally gonna have the mama I deserve.” Instead, her mother attempts to lure Bliss into becoming a mother/daughter modeling duo in Eastern Europe. Though Bliss once saw her family as a team, she now considers hot-headed boyfriend River, who has big plans for their future, her perfect match. Then she begins falling for newcomer Blake, her half-Chinese and presumed half-white summer job supervisor, who asks her questions like he cares about the answers. Bliss must choose between the life she’s always wanted, the one that’s been planned for her, and the one she makes for herself. While the novel’s conclusion feels familiar, Bliss’s struggles with self-worth, her desire to break free from external pressures, and the details of her everyday life—such as detasseling corn and learning to play Mama’s old ukulele—imbue Wilson’s romantic debut with a healthy dose of intimacy and drama. Ages 13–up. Agent: Suzie Townsend, New Leaf Literary & Media. (Apr.)
How do you fight for what you want if you don’t even know what that is? Both relatable and surprisingly suspenseful, Someday We'll Find It is a riveting coming-of-age story about a girl sleepwalking through a hot Midwestern summer until the sudden reappearance of her mother—and a new boy in town—challenge her to dream bigger. Readers will eagerly follow Bliss as she discovers some rainbows are worth chasing.” — Laura Ruby, Two-Time National Book Award Finalist and Author of Bone Gap
“Characters are complex and well-drawn… Wilson captures the reality of the rural Midwest with an authentic voice that is both powerful and raw.” — School Library Journal (starred review)
“The book explores complicated, messy relationships that include elements of rivalry, jealousy, love, and care.. An intimate story of growth and self-respect.” — Kirkus Reviews
“First-time novelist Wilson has captured so many of the complex emotions of being a teenager… a novel about discovering your own value and, just as important, finding people who see that worth without being threatened by it.” — Booklist
“[A] romantic debut with a healthy dose of intimacy and drama.” — Publishers Weekly
First-time novelist Wilson has captured so many of the complex emotions of being a teenager… a novel about discovering your own value and, just as important, finding people who see that worth without being threatened by it.
How do you fight for what you want if you don’t even know what that is? Both relatable and surprisingly suspenseful, Someday We'll Find It is a riveting coming-of-age story about a girl sleepwalking through a hot Midwestern summer until the sudden reappearance of her mother—and a new boy in town—challenge her to dream bigger. Readers will eagerly follow Bliss as she discovers some rainbows are worth chasing.
First-time novelist Wilson has captured so many of the complex emotions of being a teenager… a novel about discovering your own value and, just as important, finding people who see that worth without being threatened by it.
★ 07/01/2022
Gr 9 Up—Seventeen-year-old Bliss's mom walked out of her life when she was a young girl to pursue a modeling career in Japan, leaving Bliss to be raised by her aunt and uncle in a small, rural Illinois town. Bliss, who is white, has been bundled into a shared room with her cousin Patsy; the two of them are two rivalrous cats in a bag, jealous of anything the other has. Bliss's boyfriend, River, is angry and controlling, consumed by alcohol; their relationship is anything but consensual. A new boy, Blake, biracial Chinese and white, arrives from Chicago showing refreshing boundaries and respect—which is all new to Bliss. Despite of his father's misgivings about his future, Blake is spearheading an attempt at organic farming, hiring Bliss and Patsy to walk the bean rows in the hot summer sun. Meanwhile, River wants Bliss to detassel the plants with him—the more miserable of the two grueling summer jobs. Bliss's mom rolls back into town with promises of whisking Bliss away to Europe to accompany to reboot her career. Bliss is caught trying to please everyone but herself. The story line is predictable, but the delivery is superb. Characters are complex and well-drawn. VERDICT Wilson captures the reality of the rural Midwest with an authentic voice that is both powerful and raw. A solid, first purchase.—Leah Krippner
2022-01-26
A high school junior reevaluates her future after her absentee mother returns.
It’s been almost 6 years since 17-year-old Bliss Walker’s mother left her with relatives in Illinois for a modeling job in Japan. Since then, Bliss has tried to make the most of her life with her Aunt Trish, Uncle Leo, and 18-year-old cousin, Patsy, but she nevertheless feels like an interloper. Hotheaded boyfriend River promises to bring Bliss along when he leaves behind rural, mostly White Lakeville with its endless fields of corn and beans. Then Mama unexpectedly returns with promises of teaming up as a mother-daughter modeling duo in Eastern Europe. To add more confusion, in comes Blake, a biracial (Chinese and assumed White) Chicago transplant whose family runs an organic farm where Bliss and Patsy have summer jobs. There’s something that keeps pulling Bliss toward Blake, perhaps because he’s the only one who asks her, “What makes you happy?” Wilson unravels how much Bliss’ life revolves around prioritizing other people. Bliss downplays her needs and wants in ways that to her feel reasonable; her empathy and loyalty turn into making excuses for others. The book explores complicated, messy relationships that include elements of rivalry, jealousy, love, and care as well as questions of consent and sexual intimacy. After years of undervaluing herself, it takes some deeply intense moments for Bliss to begin to see how dysfunctional and unbalanced her relationships are.
An intimate story of growth and self-respect. (Fiction. 14-18)
Narrator Jesse Vilinsky gives this first-person coming-of-age story a harsh sarcastic tone with an underlying note of resignation. Seventeen-year-old Bliss Walker has suffered neglect while traveling with her errant mother or, more often, while left in the care of relatives. Vilinsky allows listeners to see Bliss’s softer side when she responds to her gentle friend, Blake, who believes that Bliss should have what she really wants in life. Bliss can’t help but see the sharp contrast between Blake and her aggressive boyfriend, River. Vilinsky registers Bliss’s mix of hope and distrust when her mother returns with big plans for a mother-daughter modeling career. Listeners will cheer for Bliss’s emerging sense of self to win out over her mother’s narcissism and her boyfriend’s self-centeredness. S.W. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine
Narrator Jesse Vilinsky gives this first-person coming-of-age story a harsh sarcastic tone with an underlying note of resignation. Seventeen-year-old Bliss Walker has suffered neglect while traveling with her errant mother or, more often, while left in the care of relatives. Vilinsky allows listeners to see Bliss’s softer side when she responds to her gentle friend, Blake, who believes that Bliss should have what she really wants in life. Bliss can’t help but see the sharp contrast between Blake and her aggressive boyfriend, River. Vilinsky registers Bliss’s mix of hope and distrust when her mother returns with big plans for a mother-daughter modeling career. Listeners will cheer for Bliss’s emerging sense of self to win out over her mother’s narcissism and her boyfriend’s self-centeredness. S.W. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine
