Bound To Stay Bound

Booklist - 04/01/2017 *Starred Review* A sufferer of anterograde amnesia, 17-year-old Flora has not been able to create new memories since doctors removed a brain tumor. Every day, she wakes up forgetting everything after age 10 and must use a complex array of notes, phone messages, and maps to negotiate the world. But something happens on the night of Drake’s going-away party. She remembers meeting him on the beach, and she remembers kissing him. Desperate to know how and why, Flora assembles a plan—one Post-it note at a time—to travel from England to Svalbard, an island near the North Pole, where Drake works as a research assistant. What follows is a remarkable odyssey of an atypical unreliable narrator—one who cannot rely on herself. Barr has crafted an enthralling story reminiscent of the film Memento, placing readers in the position of Flora’s memory. We follow what happens to her across scenes, yet are forced to watch her continually lose sense of time and place. One of the book’s driving forces is the hope that Flora will break out of these cycles, using both her ingenuity and grit. The one message that cannot be erased—a tattoo on her hand—encapsulates the book and the character perfectly: Flora, be brave. A deftly, compassionately written mystery. - Copyright 2017 Booklist.

School Library Journal - 05/01/2017 Gr 8 Up—Flora Banks, 17, who lives in Penzanze, England, has only one memory: kissing her best friend's boyfriend, Drake Andreassen, on the beach the night before he leaves for Svalbard, Norway. Flora has anterograde amnesia. Her memory is spotty at best and lasts from one to three hours until it resets. Because of this, Flora writes everything down on her arm, which is tattooed with her mantra, "Be Brave." But why does she remember this kiss? Flora's parents leave in a hurry to help her dying brother, who lives in France with his partner. Flora's best friend, Paige, is supposed to stay with her during this time, but Paige refuses to help her because of the kiss. After receiving adoring emails from Drake, Flora is off to Norway on her own to find him, only to discover the truth about not only Drake but also herself. Flora must verbally repeat what she believes to be true over and over. While this detail may make the book sound repetitive, it truly allows teens to understand the protagonist's condition. The story is fast-paced, and even reluctant readers will be engaged by Flora and her family, who are in dire need of an intervention. Ultimately, this title will leave readers with a sense of hope and faith in the human spirit. VERDICT True fans will await the possibility of a sequel. A strong choice for YA shelves.—Karen Alexander, Lake Fenton High School, Linden, MI - Copyright 2017 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.