In Jennifer Baker‘s Forgive Me Not, a searing indictment of the juvenile justice system, one teen in detention weighs what she is willing to endure for forgiveness. From Kim Johnson, the award-winning and critically acclaimed author of This Is My America, Invisible Son is another thriller about a wrongly accused teen desperate to reclaim both his innocence and his first love. Moderated by Alicia Tate of Multnomah County Library.

All it took was one night and one bad decision for fifteen-year-old Violetta Chen-Samuels’ life to go off the rails. After driving drunk and causing the accident that kills her little sister, Violetta is incarcerated. Under the juvenile justice system, her fate lies in the hands of those she’s wronged—her family. With their forgiveness, she could go home. But without it? Well . . .

Denied their forgiveness, Violetta is now left with two options, neither good—remain in juvenile detention for an uncertain sentence or participate in the Trials. The Trials are no easy feat, but if she succeeds, she could regain both her freedom and what she wants most of all: her family’s love. In her quest to prove her remorse, Violetta is forced to confront not only her family’s grief, but her own—and the question of whether their forgiveness is more important than forgiving herself.

“Jennifer Baker crafts a riveting, heartbreaking, and ultimately redemptive tale with nuanced characters that are perfectly flawed and relatable. Forgive Me Not is an astute social commentary on the juvenile justice system and a powerful reflection on who deserves second chances. A groundbreaking debut that will stay with the reader long after the story ends.”  —Renée Watson, #1 New York Times bestselling author, The 1619 Project: Born on the Water

Life can change in an instant.
When you’re wrongfully accused of a crime.
When a virus shuts everything down.
When the girl you love moves on.

Andre Jackson is determined to reclaim his identity. But returning from juvie doesn’t feel like coming home. His Portland, Oregon, neighborhood is rapidly gentrifying, and COVID-19 shuts down school before he can return. And Andre’s suspicions about his arrest for a crime he didn’t commit even taint his friendships. It’s as if his whole life has been erased.

The one thing Andre is counting on is his relationship with the Whitaker kids—especially his longtime crush, Sierra. But Sierra’s brother Eric is missing, and the facts don’t add up as their adoptive parents fight to keep up the act that their racially diverse family is picture-perfect. If Andre can find Eric, he just might uncover the truth about his own arrest. But in a world where power is held by a few and Andre is nearly invisible, searching for the truth is a dangerous game.

“Thrilling and poignant, Invisible Son will make your heart pound and break all at once.” –Karen McManus, #1 New York Times bestselling author

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