Shine in Mock Newbery 2026

Dec 25, 2010 Mark rated it it was amazing

Shelves: young-adult-literature, glbtq, coming-of-age, sibling-relationships, re-read, mystery, bullying-peer-pressure, relationships, suspense, drug-abuse

Love it just as much on the re-read, if not more.

Original review (from 2010):

I love Lauren Myracle's books. Like, LOVE them. In reading Bliss last year, I was struck by how Myracle had seemed to shift her focus to darker themes. She's always dealt with serious topics, often laced with heavy doses of lightening humor, but with Bliss, and now Shine, she's certainly moved over into the seedier side of human experience.

Cat lives in a small, rural North Carolina town, where everyone knows everyone, ...more

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Mar 15, 2011 Paige Y. rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2011-books-read, 2011-favorites, 2011-ya-fiction

Cat has had a miserable three years. Because of a traumatizing event when she was 13, she has basically shut herself off from all her friends, even her best friend Patrick. Now it may be too late to make things right. Patrick has been found at the convenience shore where he works, horribly beaten and in a coma. Worse yet, it looks like the attack is because Patrick is gay, and in the small, backwoods town they live in, being gay is simply unacceptable. Cat knows is attacker is most likely one of Cat has had a miserable three years. Because of a traumatizing event when she was 13, she has basically shut herself off from all her friends, even her best friend Patrick. Now it may be too late to make things right. Patrick has been found at the convenience shore where he works, horribly beaten and in a coma. Worse yet, it looks like the attack is because Patrick is gay, and in the small, backwoods town they live in, being gay is simply unacceptable. Cat knows is attacker is most likely one of the local boys she grew up with, and she is determined to find out who it is and if the attack was truly a matter of homophobia. As she delves into the mystery, she discovers how many of the town are addicted to meth, and that their addiction will drive them to any lengths to get what they need.

I was fortunate to attend on of Lauren Myracle’s sessions at the North Carolina School Library Media Association Conference in November where I got an ARC to Shine. My daughter has read the book twice but I haven’t had a chance to read it until last night. I absolutely fell in love with it.

First, the language and the setting. It’s spot-on. I knew Myracle had the language correct with this sentence: “What with the new Wal-Mart in Asheville, almost all the stores in town went on and closed.” Not an important sentence in the story by any means, but the “went on and closed” is rural NC and it enabled me to settle down and engross myself in the language of my cousins. The setting is a small mountain town and I could see it, feel it, as I read the book. Myracle spent time in the mountains when she was younger and it shows.

I also loved the characters. While it might be argued that the adults are somewhat one-dimensional, they are truly part of the background so that Cat and her contemporaries are allowed to be the story, warts and all. Cat is damaged – that is evident from the beginning – but she is able to overcome her past to find the answers she craves. I do anticipate some criticisms to the character of Robert, an eleven-year-old fetal alcohol victim whose impulsive hyperactivity tends to get him in trouble. To those who don’t think his character is realistic, I would say that I’ve taught several Roberts in my 22 years as a middle school teacher.

There are serious problems in Black Creek – homophobia, meth addiction, alcoholism – and they are not at all trivialized. In fact, one of the many reasons Shine should be a mandatory read is to deter people from trying meth. This is not an easy, pleasant read, but I found myself hiding in my office to finish it this morning. ...more

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Oct 12, 2011 Crystal rated it really liked it

Shelves: young-adult, realistic, social-issues

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Feb 07, 2012 Kris rated it it was amazing

Lauren Myracle’s Shine received plenty of press for its egregious snubbing by the National Book Award Committee. I thought this book was outstanding and hope it is remembered for being an important book for teens. This book is about so many things: a gay teen who wasn’t afraid to be himself, another teen who is so afraid of himself he does a terrible thing and a girl who shuts out the world. Cat is a girl who would rather be alone. She lets go of her friends and for most of the book we don’t und ...more

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Jan 19, 2011 Beth rated it it was amazing

Shelves: netgalley, arcs, ya-lit, 2014-novel-length-reads, own, re-read, mystery

When Cat discovers that her best friend Patrick has been the victim of a hate crime, she vows to find out who did it - especially given the sheriff department's apathy and unwillingness to investigate any possible leads. As she continues to question people close to Patrick, Cat soon finds herself running into people who don't want her digging up dirt into Patrick's past and present. Part social commentary, part mystery, Lauren Myracle manages to deal with the heavy subject matter of the plot wit ...more

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Aug 24, 2012 Peggy rated it it was amazing

Shelves: teen-lit

This is for way older teens, age 16 plus, due to the load of sex, violence, drugs, and language.

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Feb 16, 2012 Sarah rated it really liked it

This should have won an award...I loved it. Tough read in places because it portrays the bullying of a gay teen...which Myracle handles deftly. This stays with you. I am going to recommend that my Kids Lit Book Club read and discuss it.

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Jan 07, 2011 Jennifer rated it liked it

Shelves: ya, 2011

I was REALLY enjoying this book until I got close to the end, at which point it almost seemed like another author took over. I think the change in style bothered me that much more because it was so awesome up until then.

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