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  1 Out of the Easy
Author: Sepetys, Ruta
 
Click for Large Image
Class: Fiction
Age: 14-19
Language: English
Demand: Moderate
LC: PZ7
Grade: 9-12

Print Run: 150000
ISBN-13: 9780399256929
LCCN: 2012016062
Imprint: Philomel
Pub Date: 02/12/2013
Availability: Out of Stock Indefinitely
List: $17.99
  Hardcover
Physical Description: 346 p. ; 22 cm. H 8.56", W 6", D 1.02", 1.0125 lbs.
LC Series:
Brodart Sources: Brodart's For Youth Interest: Popular
Brodart's Insight Catalog: Teen
Brodart's TOP Young Adult Titles
Brodart's YA Reads for Adults
Bibliographies: Fiction Core Collection, 20th ed.
Senior High Core Collection, 19th ed.
Senior High Core Collection, 20th ed.
Senior High Core Collection, 21st ed.
Senior High Core Collection, 22nd ed.
Texas Tayshas Reading List
Young Adult Fiction Core Collection, 4th ed.
Awards: Best Fiction for Young Adults
Cooperative Children's Book Center Choices
Horn Book Guide Titles, Rated 1 - 4
Kirkus Best Books
Kirkus Starred Reviews
Publishers Weekly Starred Reviews
School Library Journal Starred Reviews
Starred Reviews: Kirkus Reviews
Publishers Weekly
School Library Journal
TIPS Subjects: Mystery/Detective Fiction
BISAC Subjects: YOUNG ADULT FICTION / Historical / United States / 20th Century
YOUNG ADULT FICTION / Girls & Women
YOUNG ADULT FICTION / Social Themes / Self-Esteem & Self-Reliance
LC Subjects: Conduct of life, Fiction
Mothers and daughters, Fiction
Murder, Fiction
Mystery and detective stories
New Orleans (La.), History, 20th century, Fiction
Prostitition, Fiction
Prostitution, Fiction
SEARS Subjects: Conduct of life, Fiction
Homicide, Fiction
Mother-daughter relationship, Fiction
Mystery fiction
New Orleans (La.), History, 20th century, Fiction
Prostitition, Fiction
Reading Programs: Accelerated Reader Level: 4 , Points: 11.0
Lexile Level: 590
Reading Counts Level: 4.3 , Points: 19.0
 
Annotations
Brodart's TOP Young Adult Titles | 02/01/2013
Life in the Big Easy is boring, but just as Josie Moraine seeks a way out of the 1950s New Orleans French Quarter, the 17-year-old brothel prostitute's daughter is thrown into an investigation that will make her question everything and everyone Josie's ever known, including her mother. 352pp.
Starred Reviews:
Kirkus Reviews | 01/15/2013
Step right onto the rough streets of the New Orleans French Quarter, circa 1950... ...and meet 17-year-old Josie Moraine, a feisty young woman whose mother, a prostitute in a Conti Street brothel, offers her nothing but scorn and abuse. From the tender age of 12, Josie has made her own way in the world, working in a local bookstore in exchange for a safe place to sleep and cleaning the brothel to earn money toward her planned escape from the Big Easy. Equal parts book smart and street smart, Josie's dream is to attend Smith College, and she will go to extremes, even blackmail, in her desperation to be accepted. But just when her plans start to gain some traction, her mother strikes again, putting Josie in the middle of a murder investigation and saddling her with a mob debt. There are some meaningful messages here: that love can come from the unlikeliest of sources--the rough-and-tumble brothel madam is much more supportive of Josie than her mother ever was--and that we are all in control of our own destinies if only we choose to be. With a rich and realistic setting, a compelling and entertaining first-person narration, a colorful cast of memorable characters and an intriguing storyline, this is a surefire winner. Immensely satisfying. (Historical fiction. 14 & up). 352pg. KIRKUS MEDIA LLC, c2013.
Publishers Weekly | 12/24/2012
Ages 14-up. Sepetys follows her debut, Between Shades of Gray, with another taut and charged historical novel, though the setting--the French Quarter of New Orleans in 1950--is a world apart from that of her previous book. Living and working in a bookshop, 17-year-old Josie Moraine dreams of attending college--anything to get away from her mother, a prostitute with Hollywood dreams and a knack for getting involved with the worst men. When Josie becomes involved in a high-profile murder investigation, she becomes even more entrenched in her circumstances. The sensual yet rigidly class-based setting is a real standout, and Sepetys has also built a stellar cast, which includes Willie, a strident but generous madam; Charlie Marlowe, the bookshop's owner; and a pair of potential love interests for Josie. Readers will find Josie irresistible from the get-go ("The only reason I'd lift my skirt is to pull out my pistol and plug you," she tells a guy early on) and will devour the sultry mix of mystery, historical detail, and romance. Agent: Writers House. (Feb.). 352p. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, c2012.
School Library Journal | 03/01/2013
Gr 9 Up. Against a vivid 1950s New Orleans backdrop, 17-year-old Josie Moraine is caught between the harsh reality of her negligent, prostitute mother's lifestyle and her desire to escape to a new life. Josie is smart, resourceful, and determined. Her support group includes Willie, the shrewd brothel madam who recognizes Josie's potential; Cokie, Willie's kind and devoted driver; Patrick, who runs the bookshop where Josie works; Charlotte, an upscale acquaintance who encourages Josie to join her at Smith College; and Jesse, the handsome motorcyclist neighbor who has eyes only for Josie. When a mysterious death leads police to Josie's mother and abusive boyfriend, the teen is drawn into the investigation and into an underworld of threats, violence, and retribution. After her mother skips town, Josie is targeted to repay her debt to a powerful criminal boss. As she tries to handle mounting adversity on her own, she struggles with fear, desperation, and her conscience. Stealing from Willie or hooking up with a wealthy john seem her only choices for survival. Overwhelmed, she reveals her predicament to Willie, who saves her in a final act of generosity. Josie's narrative features a Dickensian array of characters; the mystique, ambience, and language of the French Quarter; a suspenseful, action-packed story; and a coming-of-age realization that personal decisions ultimately shape one's future. With dramatic and contextual flair, Sepetys introduces teens to another memorable heroine. Gerry Larson, formerly at Durham School of the Arts, NC. 346p. SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL, c2013.
Journal Reviews
BookPage | 02/01/2013
Ages 14-up. The French Quarter of New Orleans is no place for a child. Josie Moraine, the daughter of a prostitute, grew up there and made her own way by cleaning the brothel and working in a bookstore. She's 17 now and ready to make a better name for herself, which means getting away from her past. When a murder ties all the strands of her life in knots, will Josie make it Out of the Easy in one piece? Author Ruta Sepetys (Between Shades of Gray) sets her story in 1950 and decorates it with both glamour and grime. The city's nightlife is decadent, but morning finds the streets littered with broken glass, Mardi Gras beads and bottles. Josie cleans up after nights of revelry, finding a high heel here, a cufflink there, and delivers them to madam Willie Woodley, whose brusque manner belies a genuine love for this tough, smart girl. There are many supporting players here: mechanic Jesse and Josie's best friend Patrick, either of whom may be a potential suitor; the working girls who've watched Josie grow up; and Cokie, Willie's driver and right-hand man, who wants to help Josie escape and get an education. Through all the plot twists, Josie's desire to better herself and maintain a moral center in a place where that's decidedly unfashionable keeps us in her corner. Out of the Easy has a mystery at its center, but in many ways it's a book about family and how the ones you're born to aren't necessarily your true tribe. Rough-edged and glamorous by turns, this is a wild ride worth taking. Heather Seggel. 352pg. BOOKPAGE, c2013.
Booklist | 02/15/2013
Grades 10-12. In a radical departure from her first novel, Between Shades of Gray (2011), Sepetys' second is partially set in a 1950s New Orleans brothel where Josie's mother works as a prostitute. Humiliated, the 18-year-old fears she is destined "for nothing more than a crummy life skirting the New Orleans underworld." That underworld looms larger when a murder occurs and it appears Josie's mother may be complicit. Josie's dream is to go to Smith College, but even if she is admitted, how will she pay for it? Meanwhile, she finds herself attracted to two very different young men: her best friend, clean-cut Patrick, with whom she works at his father's bookstore, and "quietly mysterious" biker Jesse. Complicated? You bet! Sepetys' latest strongly evokes 1950s radio soap operas, but despite over-the-top emotional pitch and stereotypical characters, this is nevertheless a page-turner that noir romance fans will gobble up like popcorn shrimp. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: The legions of fans that Sepetys earned with her best-selling debut novel will all be lining up for this. Cart, Michael. 352p. AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, c2013.
Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books | 04/01/2013
Ad. Gr. 8-12. Josie has lived for years in New Orleans, where her mother works as a prostitute for madam Willie Woodley. Now that it's 1950 and she's seventeen, Josie is virtually on her own for years, living above a bookstore in a tiny apartment provided by the shop owner and now run by his twenty-one-year-old son. Although Josie's on decent terms with Willie and even cleans the brothel in the morning, she knows she won't follow her mother's career path. She has some money saved for college, and a chance meeting with a Smith College student convinces her that she may have a shot at admission and scholarship money. Just when it seems her ticket out is all but stamped, however, her mother's involvement with a two-bit criminal threatens to dash her plans; she may have to turn tricks to pay her mother's debt to a mafia kingpin and recoup the savings her mother has stolen. Will Josie succumb to a fate worse than death? Of course not, and the time-honored theme plays out predictably, with a substantially romanticized take on prostitution and a full cast of tainted good guys and gals ready to bail our heroine at every turn. Of just such fluff, though, are guilty pleasures made, and there's no denying that readers will dog Josie's every step through the Vieux Carre. EB. 346p. THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE UNIV. OF ILLINOIS, c2013.
Horn Book | 05/01/2013
High School. In the late 1950s, life in the Big Easy was anything but easy. And that goes especially for young Josie Moraine, seventeen-year-old daughter of a narcissistic prostitute. Josie lives alone and works in a bookstore; searches for the father she never knew; and hopes to be able to leave New Orleans and make it on her own. Trying to pull yourself up by your bootstraps sounds like the American dream, but for Josie it's more of a nightmare. She also works as a maid for New Orleans's premier madam, becomes tied to a murder, owes money to a Mafia boss, and comes close to selling herself to an uptown businessman so she can pay off the bills. If this sounds like melodrama, it is, all playing out in a setting that Sepetys creates more by name-checking geography than by imparting an actual sense of the city and its culture. Numerous names of streets, restaurants (from Commander's Palace to Meal-a-Minut), and department stores (such as Maison Blanche and D. H. Holmes -- locally, but not here, known as Holmeses) crowd the novel, as do myriad characters and plot threads. Still, there's that allure of reading about the forbidden and unknown that will appeal to many a young adult looking for summer escapism. betty carter. 348pg. THE HORN BOOK, c2013.
Horn Book Guide | 11/01/2013
2. In the late 1950s, Josie, seventeen-year-old daughter of a prostitute, searches for her father and hopes to leave New Orleans on her own. Josie also works as a maid for the city's premier madam, becomes tied to a murder, and owes money to a Mafia boss. If this sounds like melodrama, it is, but the book will appeal to young adults looking for escapism. bc. 348pg. THE HORN BOOK, c2013.
9780399256929,dl.it[0].title
Review Citations
New York Times Book Review | 02/10/2013