Review: Kids of Appetite by David Arnold

Oct 07, 2016 by Samantha Andrews in Reviews

Synopsis for Kids of Appetite

Victor Benucci and Madeline Falco have a story to tell.
It begins with the death of Vic’s father.
It ends with the murder of Mad’s uncle.
The Hackensack Police Department would very much like to hear it.
But in order to tell their story, Vic and Mad must focus on all the chapters in between.

This is a story about:

1. A coded mission to scatter ashes across New Jersey.
2. The momentous nature of the Palisades in winter.
3. One dormant submarine.
4. Two songs about flowers.
5. Being cool in the traditional sense.
6. Sunsets & ice cream & orchards & graveyards.
7. Simultaneous extreme opposites.
8. A narrow escape from a war-torn country.
9. A story collector.
10. How to listen to someone who does not talk.
11. Falling in love with a painting.
12. Falling in love with a song.
13. Falling in love.

I just finished reading three romance novels in three days so reading Kids of Appetite was a breath of fresh air. It was a book different from anything I usually read and it was a wonderful experience. There was a lot going on with Kids of Appetite – there’s a love interest, a murder mystery, friendships formed, grief, and forgiveness – but somehow Arnold made it all fit together and it read smoothly.

Vic was having a hard time with the death of his father when Baz, Zuz, Mad, and Coco take him in. They each have their story told in the book and why they consider the group their family instead of going home to their actual family. You would think Vic and Mad would be my favorite characters since their was some romance between them, but I actually loved Baz and Zuz. They’re brothers who were sweet, wonderful, and felt like the protectors of the group. I loved that about them.

At the beginning of every chapter there’s an interrogation scene followed by a flashback for more context on what was stated during the interrogation. I didn’t feel like this took away from the book. Instead it kept me interested in the story. I enjoyed the back and forth in time because I felt like it didn’t allow for the story to get boring.

The best word I can use to sum up Kids of Appetite is beautiful. The bonds forged were beautiful, the forgiveness Vic finds was beautiful, and the characters were beautiful. This was my first David Arnold book and now I’m intrigued to read his other book Mosquitoland.

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book in any way.