Irises [Hardcover]

Francisco X. Stork (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2012

Two sisters discover what's truly worth living for in the new novel by the author of MARCELO IN THE REAL WORLD.

TWO SISTERS: Kate is bound for Stanford and an M.D. -- if her family will let her go. Mary wants only to stay home and paint. When their loving but repressive father dies, they must figure out how to support themselves and their mother, who is in a permanent vegetative state, and how to get along in all their uneasy sisterhood.

THREE YOUNG MEN: Then three men sway their lives: Kate's boyfriend Simon offers to marry her, providing much-needed stability. Mary is drawn to Marcos, though she fears his violent past. And Andy tempts Kate with more than romance, recognizing her ambition because it matches his own.

ONE AGONIZING CHOICE: Kate and Mary each find new possibilities and darknesses in their sudden freedom. But it's Mama's life that might divide them for good -- the question of *if* she lives, and what's worth living for.

IRISES is Francisco X. Stork's most provocative and courageous novel yet.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

With Papa dead and Mama in a permanent vegetative state, sisters Mary and Kate must figure out how to deal with the many challenges in their lives. For starters, the insurance company has denied the family’s medical claim and, on top of that, the church wants the parsonage—their home—for the new minister, Papa’s replacement. And Kate has been accepted to Stanford, but going away to college will be yet another hardship on the family. Stork (Marcelo in the Real World, 2009) has written a heart-wrenching, thought-provoking novel that forces Mary and Kate—as well as readers—to face difficult questions about life and death. The sisters must wrestle with keeping Mama alive in hopes of a miracle or making the decision to let her go. At the same time, Mary and Kate must decide if moving forward with their own lives is the right thing to do. They find no easy answers, nor will the reader, but watching them navigate all of these issues is insightful, instructive, and rewarding. Grades 9-12. --Frances Bradburn

Review

Praise for Marcelo in the Real World:
Winner of the Schneider Family Book Award for Teens
An ALA Top Ten Best Book for Young Adults

"Brisk, brilliant, unsentimental." -- Robert Lipsyte, The New York Times Book Review

[STAR] “Stork delivers a powerful tale populated by appealing (and decidedly unappealing) characters and rich in emotional nuance.” -- Kirkus, starred review

[STAR] “Shot with spirtualism, laced with love, and fraught with conundrums, this book, like Marcelo himself, surprises.” -- Booklist, starred review

Praise for The Last Summer of the Death Warriors:
A Publishers Weekly Best Book of 2010

[STAR] "[An] openhearted, sapient novel about finding authentic faith and choosing higher love."--Publishers Weekly, starred review

[STAR] "Stork's latest marks him as one of the most promising young adult authors of the new decade." -- The Horn Book, starred review

“Complicated yet ultimately endearing characters are a Francisco Stork standard. His latest novel doesn't disappoint.” -- Chicago Sun-Times

"An intricate, engaging story, with the occasional parallel to Don Quixote." -- The Denver Post

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books; 1 edition (January 1, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 054515135X
• ISBN-13: 978-0545151351
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.8 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,011,258 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Francisco X. Stork is the author of five novels: The Way of the Jaguar (Bilingual Review Press- 2000); Behind the Eyes (Dutton: June 2006.); Marcelo in the Real World (Arthur A. Levine/Scholastic 2009; The Last Summer of the Death Warriors (AAL/Scholastic 2010); Irises (AAL/Scholastic 2012).The Way of the Jaguar was the recipient of the Chicano/Latino Literary Award. Marcelo in the Real World was the recipient of the Schneider Book Award and has been translated into seventeen languages. The Last Summer of the Death Warriors was the recipient of the Elizabeth Walden Award and the International Latino Book award. He was born in Monterrey, Mexico in 1953. He came to El Paso, Texas with his adoptive father when he was nine. He attended Spring Hill College (a Jesuit College in Mobile Alabama). He received a Danforth Fellowship to Harvard University where he studied Latin American Literature with, among others, Octavio Paz, the Mexican poet and Nobel laureate. After four years of graduate school, dissatisfied with the scholarly writing required of a future college professor, he left to attend Columbia Law School hoping to make a living and support his family by practicing law while writing fiction. Fifteen years and a dozen legal jobs later he published his first novel. He currently works as a lawyer for a state agency in charge of developing affordable housing. Writing novels for young adults is his vocation.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Good read, excellent writing style! February 24, 2012

By Amanda Welling

Format:Hardcover

First Impressions: I was happy to get my hands on a copy of Irises. When I first read the book synopsis a few months ago, I knew that this was a book I wanted to look into more. I've been on a contemporary kick lately and Irises was one of the last books I read before diving back into the paranormal world. I had really high hopes for this book because it seemed to deal with more difficult issues, and that for me is a major plus. The cover art is also simply beautiful and it makes a great addition to my collection of books from this author.

First 50 Pages: First, I would like to point out that one of the big reasons I wanted to read this book is because I have read a couple other books written by the author. Francisco Stork is a great writer and I love how he handles issues other authors tend to back away from. In his other books, he took on autism and juvenile crime. In Irises, he takes on end-of-life complications and decisions, as well as religious hypocrisy. Questions about faith in God pop up frequently in this novel, which I wasn't really expecting (and I'll explain more in a minute). Overall, I had mixed feeling about Irises when I was at the fifty pages mark.

Characters & Plot: Sisters Kate and Mary are left with quite a fix after their overly protective father passes away. Their mother is in a vegetative state for the past three years with no hope for recovery. Both girls have no idea what they should be doing and major life changes are knocking on their door. Kate is expected to graduate high school soon and she has high ambitions to attend Stanford University. Nobody agrees with Kate though and expects her to go to UTEP, as well as marry Simon, her long term boyfriend while staying home to take care of her sister and their mother. Mary on the other hand, just wants to be an artist. There are many decisions to be made and they have to be made quickly because money is running out and a new preacher is ready to move into their church. Both girls will be forced to deal with things they never thought they would have to deal with.

Faith and church plays a huge role in the sisters' lives, as they tend to discuss everything while including God into all of their decisions. If I'm going to be honest, which I always am, I probably would never have picked up this book had I known there would be such an emphasis on faith. I'm not a religious person and I think that this book put me outside of my comfort zone. I decided I wanted to finish the book because, despite the religious overtones, I wanted to see how the sisters handled everything, but I had a hard time connecting to both girls because they seemed so different from me in every way. I mean, there was an entire chapter given to a pastor's sermon, and it just felt like it was a bit too much for my tastes.

Final Thoughts: Overall, this really isn't a bad book. I ended up liking the book, but I still feel like there could have been less emphasis on religion and more character and plot development. Irises definitely raises a ton of ethical questions that I do feel are important, so I give props to the author for that. I think that there will be a lot of people who will enjoy this book more than I did, especially people who are more comfortable with religious topics. This isn't my favorite book from Francisco, but I am interested to see what he does next!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Quick and easy reading June 28, 2012

By Shelf Addiction

Format:Hardcover

Technically this is a YA fiction book, but probably should be classify as a Young Adult Christian fiction book. I was not expecting that because neither the book description nor any of the genres that this book was placed on goodreads.com gave any indication. I don't have an issue reading religious books, but I like to know what I'm getting into before I begin. I listed to this on audio over several days. It was entertaining and the story was light enough that I could listen and do other tasks. I picked up a free audio download courtesy of Sync [...] via Overdrive.

In El Paso Texas two sisters Kate & Mary Romero, 18 and 16 respectively, lives change drastically after this Pastor father dies. After their father passes they really only have each other. Thier mother has been in a persistant vegetative state for some years and requires a nurse to help care for her.

Both sisters are extremely sheltered. They don't know how to drive, don't have cell phones, have old clothes. I'm was shocked that Kate even was allowed to have a job! They were raised very different than the average child. Even their father didn't drive. In a lot of ways the girls are naive and ill prepared for the road that lies ahead. It was sad to learn that they were taught that having ambition is bad and one should basically be a martyr. It's very unfortunate for girls to be taught this.

Yes, Mary has her faith which helps her keep a level head, but Kate struggles with her faith. There were lessons they needed to be learned and some hard decisions that needed to be made. All the situations were discussed with grace and without being overly preachy. They had to deal with the state of their mother, being forced out of their home owned by the church, issues with insurance money, an seemingly despondent aunt, Kate's college situation and Mary's guardianship. On top of all those external situations, they had to come to terms with their own personal issues and growth.

Read the complete review at: [...]

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars irises June 5, 2012

By My Favorite Pastime

Format:Hardcover

As Mary and Kate's mother lays in a vegetative state once again the girls are faced with tragedy. Their minister father has now passed away and they are left with decisions too difficult for them to face.

Mary is an artist, but once her mother's accident happened the light has gone out of her paintings. Mary has devoted her life to taking care of her mother. Now she must give up her extra art class after school in order to be more available to care for her mother.

Kate has always dreamed of going to college at Stanford and becoming a doctor. It was her mother's dream for her, and her constant secret for the past several years. Now that dream is about to be realized but with the death of her father Kate is confused about her responsibilities.

Irises was an engaging story. Mary and Kate's struggles with what to do once their father dies kept me turning the pages because I wanted to find out how things turned out. There were so many other issues in the book though that I couldn't give it a better rating. I didn't care for the new minister(Andy) and his goal of some day being the head of a more affluent church. His willingness to allow Kate in his apartment with the idea that things may lead to a sexual encounter was just wrong. His preaching of love and faith without actual guidance of how to gain those things showed that he had no business being a preacher. The girls' father even though he had been a minister for years had led his family with rules and antiquated ideas rather than teaching them about faith. So I guess that the author's portrayal of the religious figures left a dis-satisfied taste in my mouth. Even with that I found empathy for both Mary and Kate's characters. Both struggling with what has happened in their lives, having to face giving up dreams, relationships that have turned disappointing, and the ultimate decision of what to do about their mother all were written to be very believable. Definitely not a waste of time to read this book!