Author: Hill, Kirkpatrick
Title: Do Not Pass Go
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books Date: 2007 ISBN: 9781416914006
Price: $15.99 #of pgs: 229 Call number: FIC HIL
Annotation: Do Not Pass Go is the story of Alaskan high-schooler Deet: a good kid who has to take a leadership role in his family because his parents, although loving, are a bit flighty and irresponsible. Deet feels burdened by having to be the “adult” at home and these emotions are compounded by his growing alienation at school. When his father is arrested for drug possession and ultimately sent to prison, Deet’s first thoughts are not about his family, but about what the kids at school are going to think of him. Reality finally sets in, however, when Deet's family-life has to change radically as a result of the arrest. At first Deet is angry with his father for “ruining his life,” but soon Deet slips into a pattern of visiting his dad in jail every afternoon, while his mother learns to be the family bread winner. Eventually, Deet’s view of prisons and prisoners begins to change as he starts to see the people in prison through his father’s eyes. Through their stories, Deet sees the hopelessness of prison life as well as the reality that rehabilitation is not always possible. However, along the way, Deet also learns to have sympathy for people whose lives have followed an almost inevitable path while also realizing that something positive may come from his father’s incarceration after all.
Strength: Realistic characters and story. Serious subject matter is treated honestly and
tastefully.