The predatory nature of the men she encounters during the summer—including her own father—pushes Jezebel into developing her interests in feminism and following her dream of learning jazz and the piano. Waite has created a bold, relentlessly questioning protagonist whom readers of character-driven coming-of-age stories will empathize with, especially those who understand how it feels to burn to speak truths to a world disinclined to hear them. The city and era are vividly evoked, from Jerry’s Diner to anti-Nixon rallies on the Common to jazz broadcasts on WBCN, as is the touching blend of uncertainty and utter conviction of a bright teenager figuring out her place in the world. When Jezebel gets curious about the possibilities of LSD helping her chart a course, she—what else?—writes a letter to Timothy Leary.
Jezebel is a moving narrative, rich with everyday detail, that conjures its milieu without wallowing in nostalgia. Despite its setting in the past, there’s much here that will resonate with young adults currently facing the transition into adulthood, including a violent confrontation with a drunk man. Waite surveys, with heart and power, the end of adolescence and the challenge of discovering the woman this girl will become.
Takeaway: Touching story of finding strength, feminism, and herself in 1970s Boston.
Comparable Titles: Misa Sugiura’s This Time Will Be Different, Crystal Maldonado’s Fat Chance, Charlie Vega.
Production grades
Cover: B+
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A
JEZEBEL
by Lesley Meirovitz Waite
Pub Date: July 1st, 2023
ISBN: 9798218191900
Publisher: Manuscript
In Waite’s YA novel, a teen embarks on a chaotic search for a piano teacher.
In 1970s Massachusetts, 16-year-old Jezebel Berke wants out of her family. Her older sister, fresh out of high school, will be gone for the summer. Her mother is a drinker prone to mood swings, and her quick-tempered father recently did something to make Jez incredibly uncomfortable. The family will be at their beach house on the South Shore for the summer, but Jez hopes to sneak back to Boston to hang out in music clubs, do drugs, and hopefully find someone to teach her to play jazz piano. As the summer progresses, Jez begins collecting an assortment of characters to help her on her quest: Quinn, a handsome harmonica player who introduces her to his circle of Berklee musicians; John, a philosophical Harvard student who chats with her about morality; and Arjuna, a Hare Krishna who calls her a seeker of truth. She also has her socialist grandmother, Bubbie, to provide unconditional love. However, Jez’s truth-seeking leads her into progressively more dangerous situations, and if she survives the summer, she will eventually have to confront the family problems that are gnawing at her. The author imbues Jezebel (whose unusual name comes from her mother’s revisionist understanding of the biblical queen as a defender of the downtrodden) with plenty of angst and attitude. She skillfully evokes a nostalgia-tinged 1970s New England summer (even if some of the signifiers feel a bit on the nose): “Back in her Mom’s caddy, we sang along with Bob Dylan on the radio…Boston was summertime hopping and we drove past people hanging on their stoops with music blasting from boom boxes. On a busy corner a group of women faced the street and held signs that said, ‘Our right to decide’ and ‘Impeach Nixon!’ ” It’s a compelling mixture of messiness, sincerity, and irreverence, capturing someone halfway between what they’ve always been and what they want to become.
A vibrant coming-of-age novel.
