Down
by Norah McClintock

    DOWN by Norah McClintock
    Category:  Contemporary
    Age Recommendation:  Grades 9+
    Release Date:  10/30/07
    Publisher:  Orca Books
    Reviewed by:  Randstostipher "tallnlankyrn" Nguyen
    Rating:  4 Stars


    After being locked away, for causing a guy to end up in the hospital in critical condition, Remy is finally
    released back into his old world.

    Remy thought that it was bad where he was sent, but being back home is much worse. Especially since the girl
    that he loved has now moved on, and his mom and sister look at him more like a criminal than a son or brother.

    Now that he’s out, though, Remy wants to turn his life around. He doesn’t want to go back where he was, and
    he can’t control how his family is around him, but he does take one step forward by getting a steady job.
    Unfortunately, Remy takes two steps back when he continues to hang out with his old friends, who create
    enemies out of the new people who had just moved to their school -- the people who are different than them.

    Before he knows it, Remy is swept back into the world that he wanted to forget. And issues of prejudice arise
    as two sides are unable to find common ground. He knows that if he gets involved everything will get worse,
    but Remy just doesn’t know if he can control it.

    Powerful and insightful, DOWN creates a plot out of an issue that we all thought was over but, unfortunately, is
    still in the air.