Cyn Vargas's Nothing's Ever the Same is a starkly honest coming-of-age story told in the disarming voice of its 13-year-old protagonist. Simple but moving, this novella documents events that are traumatic but not unusual, thus marking the kinds of pain that are heartrending, as well as common, for a child approaching young adulthood. Itzel is clever and thoughtful, and her experience reflects universal elements of being a teenager: disappointment, betrayal, discovery, acceptance, and always, unavoidably, change.
"The first time I saw my mom cry was after my dad's heart attack," Itzel begins in the opening chapter. The heart attack comes during preparation for her 13th birthday party. Itzel's beloved father recovers from his heart attack, but something feels off. The family suffers one loss and then another. Itzel explores new feelings for her best friend. And then she sees something that will change the course of life for her entire family. What to do with her new knowledge? Who to blame? As the known routine is uprooted for Itzel and her parents, she has to navigate redefining relationships.
Vargas (On the Way) gives Itzel a straightforward storytelling voice, often naïve but also sharp-eyed. Her father, mother, Tia Amelia, and best friend Fred are characters sketched only briefly in Itzel's telling, but each has personality and redeeming qualities even when making mistakes. The author behind the narrator commands this story with a quiet compassion. Nothing's Ever the Same is a work of restraint and understatement, its young narrator capable of stoic relating of events as well as emotional reaction. The effect is deeply moving. --Julia Kastner, librarian and blogger at pagesofjulia