Poetic and moving! An intriguing story of a young man trying to find his identity in the midst of a complicated family.

Beautifully crafted. I loved the musicality and range of emotions explored.

I enjoyed this one! Story of a troubled celebrity's child finding our secrets about his past and then heading to Ghana to find answers. Part of why I enjoyed this so much had to do with the form - novels written as free verse poetry are newer to me but I am enjoying them!

Another great book by Kwame Alexander. He makes it easy to sell novels written entirely in verse to readers that may be turned off by the format.

It is a good thing I was on an airplane when I started Solo!  If I had been at home, with the many interuptions of daily life to keep me from reading in one sitting, I would have been frustrated.  Following Blade as he worked through his troubled relationship with his father was riviting.  Thank you Kwame!

This is not the Kwame Alexander I am used to reading, but it was still just as wonderful as the others! The verse that follows the story of Blade is amazingly beautiful and the "chapter" breaks or immensely clever! 

This book makes me want to go out and read Mary Hess' work since I am unfamiliar.

Book written in prose poems, about Blade, the teen guitarist son of a self-destructive musician. About love, friendships, ambition and defining yourself as different from your parent and sibling.

The book takes a deeper turn, gaining perspective when Blade travels to find out more about himself. A warm book, flowing with uncontrollable emotions, for teens.

This novel in verse features seventeen-year-old Blade Morrison, son of rock and roller Rutherford Morrison. He lives in Hollywood and seems to have the whole celebrity lifestyle except since his mother died Blade feels separated from his father who has substance abuse problems and his sister Storm who is trying to follow in their father’s footsteps in the music industry. Blade also plays guitar and writes music but he has no desire to join the family business. When his father crashes into the stage at his graduation where he was about to give the salutatory address, it is the last straw for him. His only solace is his girlfriend, Chapel. When her parents forbid her from seeing him and Blade finds her with her ex, Van DeWish, he feels like his world has ended. Then he learns something explosive about his family and goes on a journey to Africa to find out who he is. Alexander weaves song titles and lyrics into the text to tell Blade’s story to sweet effect. Fans of verse novels and coming of age tales will enjoy this title.

Kwame Alexander's first YA novel blends his style of novels in verse with teenage angst and a journey of self-discovery. Blade Morrison is salutatorian at his high school, all set to head off to college in the fall. He plans to do that with his girlfriend Chapel, although her parents have forbidden them to see each other. The reason? Blade's father is a rock star who is frequently in and out of rehab and the tabloid headlines. When his father publicly embarrasses him once again, Blade sets off to find his roots. So he heads from Hollywood to Ghana.

The story unfolds through a mix of song lyrics Blade writes, texts between the characters (Blade, Chapel, Blade's sister and father), and poetic narrative stretches. Along with the usual teenage search for identity and independence, the story also deals with themes of betrayal, loss, love, forgiveness, celebrity lifestyles, and what makes a family.

Although it has such meaningful content, it is a quick read due to the way the verse carries you along. Meant for YA and too mature for younger readers, Solo is another masterpiece by Alexander. Readers who are music buffs will enjoy the references to musicians and particular songs that are scattered throughout the book. (They may also wince over the fate of a certain Eddie Van Halen Frankenstrat.)

Writing a YA verse novel seems to me a risky strategy, given that the one thing guaranteed to make my teenage students claim a total lack of comprehension is poetry. It also needs to not just be a spurious exercise in authorial grandstanding; there needs to be a believable reason for the novel to written in verse rather than prose. On the other hand, a verse novel is inevitably shorter than a traditionally written one, which means it will only take a third of the time to read, which might prove a happy compromise with those reluctant readers. I will be forcing Solo in front of my teenage students to see how this plays out.

In terms of the first of these potential stumbling blocks, protagonist Blade Morrison's story lends itself to the verse novel on the basis of him being an aspiring songwriter and son of Rutherford Morrison, legendary rock star, alcoholic and not particularly impressive parent. Aside from his father's mortifying antics, Blade still mourns the death of his mother some years before (because no teen in YA is allowed to have both parents still living) and grapples with his father's ability to create carnage in more ways than one when Blade's girlfriend comes under pressure to break up with him based on a strongly held parental belief in that old adage, "like father, like son."

Solo splits clearly into sections, like the songs Blade writes break into verse, bridge and chorus. The first part, set in L.A. sees Blade graduating, via yet another humiliating appearance from Rutherford, while the mid-section is rocked by a revelation that calls Blade to question everything he previously believed about his family. The final act, somewhat incongruously, takes Blade to Ghana, a location he may have thought would be safe from his father's antics, but guess what? For a novel in this form, it's quite long, but these seismic shifts in action and location serve to maintain the reader's interest.

The poetic style is simple; the vocabulary is certainly accessible to the intended teenage audience, although I sometimes yearned for something a little more nuanced. Solo is one of two verse novels I've read in recent weeks and the other, Mr Either/Or by Aaron Poochigian, features a more free-wheeling, complex style, which was slightly more to my taste. That said, Solo is a YA novel, and so that level of lyrical virtuosity would perhaps be out of place.

Made up of a series of short poems rather than one long narrative, Solo is further broken up with a few different themes and purposes to the poems - Blade's first person narrative makes up the majority, but with interspersed text message conversations, as well as Blade's song lyrics and commentaries on the greatest guitar songs of all time. It is the last of these which set the book most clearly in a real-life musical context, and I was amused by the contrast between the tremendous originality of Solo's style and plot and the - let's the kind - pedestrian rock classics discussed; I might be prepared to admit that With or Without You is U2's best song (not that great a compliment, in fairness) but it's probably not that frequently mentioned in young adult novels in 2017. I liked the idea that Blade was rebelling against his classic rock roots with something more progressive; it's the kind of teen revolution not often covered in this genre, and represents a refreshing change.

I enjoyed this teen spin on the ageing rock star narrative; it's Blade's story, but, as in life, he's frequently overshadowed by his larger-than-life parent on the page. Blade himself can be a little frustrating; aside from anything else, I think most people would doubt the pure devotion of a girlfriend whose main contribution to your day is to ask to be taken shopping on Rodeo Drive. We all make mistakes though, so I'll let Blade off. Alexander and Hess have entirely vindicated the writing of this as a verse novel; the poetry elevates what might otherwise have been a rather less memorable story, and the combination of both conventional and extraordinary events, along with the original style, make this a really interesting read.
Review to be published at Fourth and Sycamore in August

Finally!  A young adult novel written by the venerable Kwame Alexander!  For all of his fans, you will not be disappointed.  To those readers who aren't yet familiar with Mr. Alexander's work, congratulations, you have a new favorite author!

This novel introduces us to Blade, the youngest child of a burnt-out rock musician.  Blade's mother died when he was young, and the family has never recuperated from their loss.  Blade's dad has retreated into drugs and alcohol, Blade's sister tries to be the matriarch, and Blade throws himself into his guitar and his relationship with his girlfriend, Chapel.

But when Chapel isn't there for him, and he discovers a somber family secret, his life turns even more upside down.  Written in verse, Solo follows Blade's journey to self discovery, friendship and family.

Solo is a young adult novel that will appeal to students of all ages.  This is definitely going in my middle school library, and I will recommend it to readers of all ages!

Kwame Alexander does it again! I love the way he and Mary Rand Hess uses poetry to reach into the hearts of his characters. There is something so authentic about the voices of the characters and the emotions that sparse verse can reveal. This is a book that, though it is a quick read, will leave you thinking and pondering for days.

I really liked this book, as I have all of Mr. Alexander's work.  I really enjoyed the tie-in with music and I think that will appeal to many teenage readers.  The prose worked really well and never felt forced.  I also thought the ending was perfect and very authentic to what the book was REALLY about.  Great book!

Our students love anything by Kwame Alexander, so I know they are going to love this. Kwame Alexander is an author who should write even more books!

My favorite Kwame book yet.  

Blade lost his mother at a young age.  Even though he lives a privileged life because his dad is a rock star, that doesn't prevent the rest of his world from falling apart.  As Blade looks for love in the right and wrong places, he goes on a quest for truth, wrestles with his demons, finds joy in simplicity, and breathes music back into his soul.

This novel in verse is layered in meaning and beautiful and I am already ready to read it again.  It is that good.

Although beautifully written (as all of Alexander's work is), Solo won't appeal to many of my readers, despite the verse format. Solo ends up being a fantastic look at verse novels and a great read for lovers of literature, but definitely a niche novel.

I LOVE Kwame Alexander's MG verse novels, despite having no interest in sports. I was really excited to read a YA verse novel from him. Unfortunately, this was kind of all over the place for me. I felt like the story could use some focusing and the verse didn't sing for me the way it usually does. I would still recommend it to readers looking for verse novels, because other readers might find points of connection with the story that I just didn't.

I just love Kwame Alexander's style. In his next novel in verse, out this summer, Blade is a teenager living in the shadow of his rock star dad and coping with the recent death of his mom. He has to learn how to get along with his dad, deal with family secrets, and find his place in the world.

Solo is a complex and layered look at a young boy, about to turn 18. His journey through the book takes him through challenges involving school, family, heritage, life, love and death. I am very eager to hear what students think about the questions the book raises. It is a book that will leave you thinking until the last verse. It's words deserve a few reads, as I suspect
I will find many gems that I missed the first time.

This was another winner by Kwame Alexander, but this time for young adult readers. A wonderful book filled with characters who the reader comes to know, love, and feel their "hearts" throughout the story. One of my favorite things about this book was that the ending left the reader with many questions that he needed to answer on his own; this means you are thinking about the book, long after the covers are closed. #arealbookthatleavesuthinking