When I Was Joe by Keren David

When Ty witnesses the knife murder of another boy and helps the police identify the culprits, he’s forced to live in a witness protection program with his mother. As they pack, a bomb is thrown through the front door of their apartment, nearly killing them both. Over the coming months Ty becomes Joe, takes on a new look, and starts at a new school. To his surprise, he finds he is attracting the attention of the girls in his class, and the boys find his need to conceal his real identity cool — being Joe is not so bad. His ability as a runner is spotted, and he starts training under a college student who is a Para-Olympics contender, but this special treatment attracts resentment. Somehow Joe keeps drawing attention to himself despite his efforts to remain anonymous. Then his beloved grandmother back in London is badly injured in an attack designed to flush Ty out of hiding, and he realizes something must be done. This wonderfully gripping and intelligent novel movingly depicts a young man’s confusing sense of identity in extreme danger — a remarkable debut from a great new writing talent.

Categories: Young Adult (YA)