The First Part Last
13 Jul 2009 Leave a Comment
in Uncategorized Tags: 2004 Michael L. Printz Award Winner, teenage pregnancy
The First Part Last by Angela Johnson
Published by Simon Pulse, New York: 2003
132 pgs.
Recommended reading age: 13 and up
VOYA Rating: 3Q, 3P, JS
“the first part last” was a quick and heartbreaking little read that packed some very serious subject matter into its tightly and smartly relayed story. The story is told in a series vignettes and jumps back and forth in time alternating between “then” and “now” for each chapter and ending in the chapter of “heaven”.
This short book opens up right away and the reader finds out that 16-year-old Bobby, who lives in Brooklyn, is the single parent of a beautiful baby girl. The rest of the story unfolds as we learn the events leading up to how Bobby and his girlfriend Nia wind up with a baby. Nia and Bobby are dating and although they know better and are aware of safe sex practices the two wind up getting pregnant through their own irresponsible actions. Nia and Bobby are in love, like teenagers will be but Bobby also has the support of his closer than blood friends on his side. Nia, Bobby and his loyal friends all are a tight knit crew even though Bobby and Nia are a couple. Even when Bobby tells his friend’s of Nia’s pregnancy the young group of teens try their best to remain as supportive as possible.
As the story bounces back and forth the reader slowly starts to see how much Nia and Bobby really are in love, and how supportive both their families manage to be. You get inside of Bobby’s head and are able to really sense his fears and apprehension as he and Nia go through this pregnancy together. They question what to do with the baby and decide, with the support of their families, that adoption will be the best and most responsible option. All through their ordeal you get a sense that Bobby only grows more attached to Nia and you really feel like the young couple is truly in love. Due to complications however, Nia is rendered unconscious and ends up in a coma from which she will never wake up. Bobby is left with the heavy descision: Should he go through with he and Nia’s plan and give their newborn baby to the adoptive parents or should he take the baby home and raise her himself?
Bobby, though a mere 16, in a heartbeat makes the decision to keep the baby, naming her Feather, and feeling like it is a piece of Nia he will get to hold on to. Not only is he grief-stricken having lost the love of his life. Bobby now has to impending duty of raising this small child.
I think teens would enjoy this book because, on one hand it reads very dramatically like an after-school special. It has that bit of a “Juno” feel to it and you get to really feel the internal struggle that Bobby has. In contrast to many of the realistic fiction books about teens I have read lately, many of the characters here leave a positive message for the reader. Bobby moves out of his beloved Brooklyn to the safer home of his father in order to raise Feather in a safer environment. He chooses to keep the baby rather than give her up. Bobby’s friends understandingly wish him well and offer him support even though they will be sad to lose him. Even the parents of both Nia and Bobby are incredibly supportive although at times offer tough love. I also feel the manner in which the story is told in a non-linear fashion would appeal to teens because it is a bit more interesting than a long and over-developed drama. Reluctant readers might appreciate the quick story but may be slightly off-set by the non-linear lapses in time.
The cover art of the book shows a photograph of a young African American male, presumably Bobby, holding a beautiful baby girl. Bobby looks completely and deeply into his thoughts and even a little lost. I don’t know that it was an incredibly compelling cover, but it was appropriate for the story. Some teens, especially African American teens, might also be drawn to the cover and more likely to pick this up because it shows main characters that are more like them and easier to relate to, then oh say, Harry Potter or Edward Cullen. By showing an actual picture, of an actual teen the cover makes it a little bit more real and relatable.
