Subway Love

If her parents had never divorced, Laura wouldn’t have to live in the shadow of Bruce, her mom’s unpredictable boyfriend. Her mom wouldn’t say things like “Be groovy,” and Laura wouldn’t panic every weekend on the way to Dad’s Manhattan apartment. But when Laura spots a boy on a facing platform, lifting a camera to his face, looking right at her, Laura feels anything but afraid, and she can’t forget him.

Buy on Amazon Buy on Indie Bound

Description

If her parents had never divorced, Laura wouldn’t have to live in the shadow of Bruce, her mom’s unpredictable boyfriend. Her mom wouldn’t say things like “Be groovy,” and Laura wouldn’t panic every weekend on the way to Dad’s Manhattan apartment. But when Laura spots a boy on a facing platform, lifting a camera to his face, looking right at her, Laura feels anything but afraid, and she can’t forget him. Jonas, meanwhile, thinks nonstop about the pretty hippie girl he glimpsed on the platform — trying to comprehend how she vanished, but mostly wondering whether he will see her again in a city of millions — and whether if he searches, he would have any chance of finding her. In a lyrical meditation on love, Nora Raleigh Baskin explores the soul’s ability to connect, and heal, outside the bounds of time and reason.

 

Baskin makes the time travel seem believable and leaves readers hopeful by relaying an ending that fits with the theme, Know how to live in the time that is given you.” The novel calls attention to the lost art of graffiti on New York subways, which inspired parts of the story. Language and an off-the-page sexual encounter make this a better choice for older teens. Readers will be intrigued and enjoy this romance that could be found in The Twilight Zone.

School Library Journal

Baskin (Surfacing) embraces magical realism in this evocative story, which blends time travel with the notion of soul mates destined to connect. …. the novel captures the essence of the times in which both teens live and expresses the teens’ dissatisfaction with their situations. While Baskin keeps certain things ambiguous, such as the nature of the time travel, the book’s themes remain clear. The teens’ love for each other is eternal, providing figurative and literal escape from less-than-perfect homes.

Publishers Weekly