Golden - Jessi Kirby

Golden by Jessi Kirby
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: May 14, 2013
Source/Format: Edelweiss (Thanks S&S!) || e-galley

[I received this book from the publisher. This in no way affects the thoughts expressed in my review.]

Seventeen-year-old Parker Frost may be a distant relative of Robert Frost, but she has never taken the road less traveled. Valedictorian and quintessential good girl, she’s about to graduate high school without ever having kissed her crush or broken the rules. So when fate drops a mystery in her lap—one that might be the key to uncovering the truth behind a town tragedy, she decides to take a chance. (from Goodreads)

As a self-professed fan of fantasy, I'm surprised to say that most of my favorite books so far this year are contemporaries. While I was trying to gather my thoughts about Golden, it occurred to me that the reason I loved it so was because it felt authentic. Jessi Kirby's talent for stringing words into the most beautiful phrases was certainly appealing. But it is truly Parker and her journey that made me love this story as much as I did.

Parker Frost is yet another main character that I find myself deeply identifying with. She's a typical goal-oriented, rule-driven girl, one who has always been determined to make her mother proud through her achievements. I was completely like that in high school, so I understand her incessant need to follow the rules and to do what was expected of her every. single. time.

It's apparent from the start that Parker is starting to feel restless in her own skin. She begins to question the life she's living and the life she's headed towards (college on a scholarship basically), and it unnerves her. She's been working so hard to accomplish her goals for so long, that to think that all the effort was for nothing is something that's scary and unfathomable. She can't reconcile the thoughts with her reality, and she certainly tries to ignore them for a while.

So when this mystery falls into her lap, it's no surprise that she teeters on the brink of addressing it all or staying safe and sound in her comfort zone. It is also here where I identify with Parker, as she weighs the pros and cons of either a step forward or a step back. We've each encountered that moment in our lives when we don't know what the right thing to do is - and it is the path we choose to take that will change everything or keep everything the same as it always was and is. Even though a part of me willed Parker to be cautious, the bigger part of me just wanted her to take a risk, take a step, take a chance.

It's a universal experience, I believe, to have that point of no return - a moment where you make a decision that you won't be able to take back. Kirby handled this phenomenon incredibly well in her novel, bringing us the parallels of Parker's reality with the reality in the journal she finds, and I like how she juxtaposed the results of making either of those decisions.

We all want to believe that there's a greater force out that there shows us a sign when we need to figure out what we want to do with our lives. Parker's sign is this journal. I like how the journal started Parker on a journey that changed her completely. She discovered that there could be a possible path different from her own, that things you might have least expected to matter - a painting, a moment, a memory - are the ones that could matter most in the end.

Kirby also tackles the universal need to believe that fate can play a hand in things, especially when it comes to missed connections, second chances (or first ones) and that overwhelming, consuming sort of love you only see in the movies. While in most cases, that could turn into something cliche, Jessi instead manages to make it seem raw and real in this book. It's something that toys at each of our minds, and presenting it this simply was a smart choice when writing the book. 

Parker's journey is beautifully handled, as we see both sides of the coin and allowing us to see into her fears, doubts and insecurities. Being able to get a good grasp of Parker was essential to enjoying the book, and I feel she was really given the time to really flourish. This was key in my enjoyment of the book, as I love good character development. Parker's journey definitely reminded me of my own self a few years ago, and I loved that.

In the end, it all boils down to this question: who will you choose to be? It's a question that Parker discovers the answer to, as the novel finally reaches it's end, even as we discover that she still has a long way to go. Closing the last page of Golden and saying goodbye to Parker was like bidding your best friend a "See you soon!" - you know that she'll go on to have more experiences without you, but you also know that maybe, somewhere, someday, you'll see her again.