LitPick Review
In Katrina L. Burchett's Choices, a group of African American high school students from York, PA face questions about relationships, peer pressure, and religion. The main friendship group includes La Keeta, pregnant out of wedlock with no contact with the baby's father, Angel whose workaholic mother ignores her, Shauntice whose father abuses her mother, and Hope and Bridgette, Christian girls hoping to influence their friends. High school boys circle around these girls as relationships emerge and dissolve with painful consequences. Stay tuned because this is the first novel in a trilogy.
Opinion:
Burchett envisions a world where Christian praise services and Bible quoting teenagers can serve as an antidote to invasive popular culture. At times the dialogue seems forced and I wonder if teenagers really cite chapter and verse when talking about the Bible. The problems the adolescents face are, however, quite real and some of their solutions ring true. This book could begin to bridge the gap between popular culture and Christian values and open conversation between teens and parents about the consequences of choices.
