No Going Back
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"Powerful…. The excellent pacing and heart-wrenching exploration of redemption will sweep readers up." —Kirkus Reviews
"A page-turning, highly readable story." —Booklist
"Time-stamped chapters add urgency, intensity, and excitement as the thrilling plot progresses, making for a page-turning story about forgiveness and personal evolution." —Publishers Weekly
"The fast pace of the book will keep readers engaged as they bounce between the present and the past …. the energy of Antonio’s story will sweep interested readers along, and they will sympathize with his desire to become the person he knows he can be throughout this novel focused on friendship, loyalty and redemption." —Bookpage
In this tour de force about one teen’s quest for redemption from the award-winning author of American Road Trip, Antonio is determined to make amends to the people he hurt most—even if it means breaking the terms of his early release from juvenile detention.
It’s Friday morning, and seventeen-year-old Antonio Sullivan is on the verge of earning his early release from Zephyr Woods Youth Detention Center. Having been incarcerated for the last year and a half for a crime he didn’t directly commit, he’s now dedicating himself to his education and his sobriety program. What’s more, Antonio is driven by a deep need to make amends to the two people he hurt the most: his mom and his lifelong best friend, Maya. The conditions of his early release are clear—Antonio can’t have any contact with his father or miss his first meeting with his parole officer Monday morning. But a lot can happen between Friday and Monday, especially when the odds are against you.
Told through time-stamped chapters that race at a fever pitch over the course of a weekend, this absorbing coming-of-age novel explores what it means to right past wrongs in the face of adversity.
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Praise for No Going Back:Kirkus Reviews
A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
"This is a taut coming-of-age story told in a combination of prose, with chapter headers that mark the day and time, and poems that flash back to earlier events. Antonio’s journey of self-realization features powerful inner dialogue that allows readers to understand the impulses that lead to his poor choices, and the novel brutally reflects the consequences and trials of addiction, chronic illness, and domestic violence on a family. The excellent pacing and heart-wrenching exploration of redemption will sweep readers up." -
"Told in Antonio’s first-person voice, the chapters alternate between loose free verse and prose, the former providing the rough-edged, gritty backstory. Antonio is a sympathetic character who makes bad decisions, and trouble seems to stick to him… [a] page-turning, highly readable story."Booklist
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"Seeking to make amends with his Uruguayan mother and childhood best friend Maya, Antonio yearns to obtain redemption and absolution, and to start over…. Poetic flashbacks by Flores-Scott (American Road Trip) detail Antonio’s downward spiral while also presenting his reflections about the world around him, and time-stamped chapters add urgency, intensity, and excitement as the thrilling plot progresses, making for a page-turning story about forgiveness and personal evolution."Publishers Weekly
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"The fast pace of the book will keep readers engaged as they bounce between the present and the past …. the energy of Antonio’s story will sweep interested readers along, and they will sympathize with his desire to become the person he knows he can be throughout this novel focused on friendship, loyalty and redemption."BookPage
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"Fast-paced, poignant, and poetic, Patrick Flores-Scott's No Going Back tracks rage—its sources, disconnects, misjudgments, and consequences—without flinching. This is a book of unexpected hope."Sondra Soderborg, author of Sky Ropes
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"A deep look into the heart of being misunderstood, told with prose you just can't fake. Flores-Scott has achieved something vital here, a lyrical take on self-reclamation laid out over a weekend of cold reality. With honest voices, a flow of poetry, and a satisfying conclusion, this book is a gift with a purpose, the kind you hand to a reader that both wants and needs it."Sean Beaudoin, author of Welcome Thieves and Wise Young Fool
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"A gripping and heart-wrenching novel about family, friendship and second chances—will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end."Betty Culley, author of Three Things I Know are True and The Name She Gave Me
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"Poetry, resilience, unflinching honesty, a steady undercurrent of hope, plus a wild adventure with a ticking clock, this book packs it all in for a three-day turbulent ride that’s full of heart. Tonio does all the wrong things for all the right reasons, and I rooted for him every step of the way. His story explores the many places love can come from, and how our family, friends, and community keep us afloat during the toughest of times."Kristin Bartley Lenz, author of The Art of Holding On and Letting Go
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"A powerful story of the push and pull between doing what’s right and being there for the people we love."Katherine Higgs-Coulthard, author of Junkyard Dogs and Hanging with My Peeps
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"No Going Back showcases how difficult it is to successfully navigate both parole and the reentry process when your past isn’t done with you, and when you aren’t quite done with your past. Through it all, Flores-Scott delivers a beautiful exploration of familial love, the idea of healthy friendships, and the long-term impacts of trauma."Rita Shah, author of The Meaning of Rehabilitation and Its Impact on Parole
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Praise for American Road Trip:The New York Times
Printz Award Longlist
Latinidad List, Best YA Novel
YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults List
Bank Street College Best Book of the Year
TAYSHAS Reading List Selection
Teen Vogue Best Gift Book for Teens
Little Free Library Action Book Club Pick
Connecticut, Nutmeg Award Finalist
Evergreen Teen Book Award Finalist
Georgia Peach Finalist
Arizona, Grand Canyon Reader Award Finalist
Licensed to Webtoons for Graphic Digital Serialization
* "In a story about mending broken ties, making sacrifices, and visiting landscapes and loved ones from the past, Flores-Scott (Jumped In) invites readers to follow T on a road trip that brings to life the Avilas’ Latino heritage and Manny’s disorder. In addition to the book’s serious subject matter, it celebrates many things: family love, realized dreams, and the taste of a green chile cheeseburger." —Publishers Weekly, starred review
* "This powerful story also reminds readers that the paths to their dreams may have to take detours but are still attainable." —Booklist, starred review
* "Adeptly provides a window and a mirror of Latinx culture and reimagines the American road trip as an individual journey, one deeply anchored in sacrifice for those we love." —School Library Journal, starred review
"Written in T's vulnerable, observant voice, American Road Trip holds true to classic road-trip themes like the emotional power of sing-alongs and unexpected detours, but it also wades into the darker waters of mental illness with both realism and sensitivity."
- On Sale
- Apr 2, 2024
- Page Count
- 336 pages
- Publisher
- Christy Ottaviano Books
- ISBN-13
- 9780316407700
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About the Author
Patrick Flores-Scott is the acclaimed author of the award-winning novels Jumped In and American Road Trip, which was named a YALSA Best Fiction Book, a TAYSHAS Reading List Selection, an SLJ National Hispanic Heritage Month pick, and a Teen Vogue Best Gift Book, and was licensed to WEBTOON for graphic digital serialization. Patrick taught public school in Seattle, Washington, for many years and has written for theater and the slam poetry stage. He lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan, with his family and invites you to visit him online at patrickfloresscott.com.
Peek the Audiobook
From NOVL Nation
“This fast-paced narrative delves into the profound experience of being misunderstood, skillfully portrayed through authentic and compelling prose. With its gripping storyline and heart-wrenching exploration of family dynamics, friendship, and the pursuit of redemption, this book will undoubtedly keep you engrossed until the final page.”
– Patti, @lovelyloveday
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Book Club Guide
1. Antonio opens the book by asking the reader to “keep these words in mind: On our journey to growing and developing into the ideal whole persons we hope to become, we are all just stumbling forward in the dark, searching to find our way the very best we can” (p. viii). What does this mean to you?
2. Mrs. Williams instructs Antonio in breathing exercises to help manage his thoughts. How does breathing recur throughout the book? Why do you think this technique is helpful?
3. What do responsibility and accountability look like to Antonio and the people in his life? How do you think someone can effectively apologize and make amends?
4. What does home mean to Antonio? Does that meaning change over the course of the book? How?
5. What do parents and children owe one another? How do Antonio’s relationships with his parents and parent-figures evolve? What does it look like to take care of someone
6. Antonio conveys his present in prose but shares his past in verse. What do these different styles reveal? Why do you think they are written this way?
7. In what ways does the past mirror the present? Are we doomed to repeat our family’s mistakes?
8. How do trust and communication factor into Antonio’s friendships? Who shows up for Antonio?
9. The actions of No Going Back happen during the span of a single weekend. How does Antonio relate to time? How does this compressed timeline impact the reading experience?
10. Gary tells Antonio that “sometimes you gotta say goodbye so a fresh start can happen” (p. 302). What do you think he means by this? Who and what does Antonio say goodbye to?
11. How do you think Antonio’s experience in Zephyr Woods may have helped or hindered his development?
12. At the end of the book, do you think the story Antonio tells will keep him from being sent back to Zephyr Woods? Should it?
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