Forbidden (review)

Abstract

Reviewed by: Forbidden April Spisak Suzuma, Tabitha . Forbidden. Simon Pulse, 2011. [464p]. ISBN 978-1-4424-1995-7 $16.99 Reviewed from galleys R Gr. 9-12. Lochan and Maya are the two oldest siblings in a household with three younger children and an alcoholic mother trying to recapture her youth (their father who left without looking back). The two sibs, who have always comforted and helped each other, divvy up the endless tasks, carefully ignoring their growing feelings for each other, desires that each acknowledge could have grown out of desperation and isolation as much as actual romantic feeling. Both Maya and Lochan, who take turns narrating, are tragically confused and alone, taking their frustrations out on their younger siblings, avoiding their friends and well-meaning teachers, and acting on choices that they recognize as unwise and unethical, even as they find incredible comfort and pleasure in their taboo closeness (in a contrast to Coman's Bee and Jacky, BCCB 10/98, the author makes a strong case that Maya and Lochan's relationship is entirely consensual). The inevitable downfall is harsh and shocking, and readers, as stunned as the protagonists, will wonder what other paths might have yielded for these two gifted teens. Suzuma carefully elicits both sympathy and wariness about the protagonists, dual perspectives that aid in navigating the substantial romantic scenes between the siblings—it is clear that they are both victims of their difficult lives, even while they are also too adept at explaining away the ethical mess they're making. There is nothing about this novel that is easy, but readers who snag the book for the controversy will stick around for the polished writing and compelling character development and for Maya and Lochan, two teens burdened with the world but still daring to hope for something, anything, better. [End Page 493] Copyright © 2011 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois