Fiction

F This latest novel from National Book Award finalist Ackerman (e.g., Waiting for Eden) focuses on the interactions of a half-dozen characters in the course of one 24-hour period in 2013. Is the devil making them misbehave, or is it simple teenage hormones? VERDICT Barry (She Weeps Each Time You're Born) successfully captures the high jinks of a group of high school teens discovering themselves, learning about life, and finding out what it means to work together. There she becomes a beloved member of a ragtag "family" of former soldiers who keep house and work the land alongside a couple of newly freed slaves. Led by the bookish Elimane and mothered by scarcely teenaged Khoudiemata, the motley group perfects the art of grifting, carefully planning its forays into the village to snatch food or items for barter.