World News from Waverly High
I attended an American public high school during the turbulent period presented by Linda Kass in World News from Waverley High. The heady changes, confusion, wonder and horror of the time ring true as witnessed in this story told by a high school junior.
This adult/YA crossover historical novel covers the school year from August 1969 to June 1970 with the immediacy of first-person, present tense journaling. Lena Rosen starts her third-year elective classes, including Current History, Journalism, and a stage production of To Kill a Mockingbird at Waverley High School in Columbus, Ohio. Her journalism teacher writes on the first day’s blackboard “Journalism is the first rough draft of history,” which effectively sets the tone for what follows: an intelligent adolescent and her friends from diverse backgrounds, many working on the school newspaper The Beacon, encountering the social turmoil of the Vietnam War, the dawning of environmental consciousness, and the continuing tensions of race relations. Her reporting of events in and around Waverley High occurs while Lena deals with emotions and social rituals that have defined American adolescence as the clash of cultures outside the school looms ever closer.
This novel is a vivid and vital documentation of a critical period in American history. My only concern is that the dense interweaving of cultural references from the period—its songs, movies, books, fashions and television shows—will resonate with those of us who recall the time but may overwhelm younger readers coming in fresh. Ms. Kass addresses this commendably, with notes on the music featured, a contextual afterword, and a reader’s guide. This essential story with its positive framing deserves a wide audience seeking to understand the storms in American culture from the late 20th century to the present day. (Ed. note: The reviewer is of no relation to the author.)
