Saint Iggy
Starred Review.Grade 9 Up–Iggy Corso, 16, doesnt do drugs, even though he was born addicted to crack. He lives in a city housing project, in an apartment filled with furniture that his stoned and drunken father collects from the street. Iggys mother is an addict who has been AWOL for a month. The cool thing about the teen is that, despite his parents and his environment, he doesnt feel sorry for himself. A freshman who has failed two grades and been suspended eight times, he takes things for what they are, until he gets suspended again, pending a hearing. His principal says to him, Youve had a lot to overcome...but....We can all...do something that contributes.... After listening to this, Iggy realizes that his only chance for the future is to get back into school. The principals statement haunts him throughout the book. He enlists help from his so-called mentor/friend, Mo (who was suspended from pre-law school after being caught smoking pot), but his association with this disaffected youth from a wealthy family creates a whole new set of problems. Thick pencil lines run down the inner margins of the pages; Iggys life is like these lines, on the edge, reaching out, searching for somewhere to go. The story is told in widely spaced paragraphs, making it a good choice for reluctant readers. Like Troy Billings in GoingsFat Kid Rules the World(Putnam, 2003), Iggy Corso is unforgettable.–Shannon Seglin, Chantilly Regional Library, Fairfax County, VACopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.