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Geek Girl Authority
01-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Geek Girl Authority
Book Review: JUST EMILIA
Thank you to Regal House Publishing for sending a copy of Just Emilia in exchange for an honest review. TW: ageism, alcohol/alcoholism, car accident, death of a parent, fatphobia, grief, sexual assault, suicidal thoughts. Three women are trapped in an elevator, but soon their confines become the least of their problems in Just Emilia . There's something connecting teenager Em, middle-aged Emilia, and elderly Millie, which goes beyond the obvious. Over the course of many hours, they attempt to unravel the truth behind their shared past trauma and decipher ways to make a difference in their lives. About Just Emilia by Jennifer Oko It's October 12 in Washington, DC. An ordinary day for many, but not for Emilia. Today is a struggle, and it's heightened by how fraught her relationship with her husband Joel has become. Surely, some retail therapy will lighten her mood. RELATED: New Release Radar: New Books Coming Out on May 27 While the shopping trip is fun, what follows for Emilia is decidedly not. She rushes to catch the elevator in the Friendship Heights Metro, only for it to abruptly shut down. Trapped in this cage, Emilia attempts to make conversation with her two companions. She's eventually able to coax them into conversation, which is when they learn the first of many oddities about their situation. All three of them are named Emilia, but they go by different iterations of the name. RELATED: Book Review: Shield of Sparrows Young Em is a troubled teen, combating suicidal thoughts, while Millie is in her seventies and devastated by the breakdown in her relationship with her daughter Sonya. Emilia's marriage is on the rocks, mainly because she's still haunted by the death of her mother, the famous local TV personality Sally Fletcher. As the three women reveal more about themselves, they figure out that they aren't three random Emilias coincidentally trapped in an elevator. They're the same Emilia, at different ages during her life. A Quick Read, But Not a Perfect One Just Emilia is a swift read, like a brisk walk down the DC streets that are vividly described in the book. Where it falls flat is in substance. We know more about the roads the three Emilias travel than the personal journeys they undertake. RELATED: Book Review: In the Garden of Monsters There's a lot of telling, not enough showing. We don't feel the grit and grime of a public elevator or the closed confines of the area they're stuck in. There's only one scene when the characters must, embarrassingly, deal with natural bodily functions. After that, it seems their bodies turn to stone. Are they hungry, dehydrated or frustrated? Author Jennifer Oko also gives little page time to Millie. Instead, there are far too many barbs directed at her appearance. Millie's choice to indulge in cosmetic surgery may be questionable, but Emilia and Em act like they've never seen an older woman before. Worse, they're disgusted by such a figure. People age. And Millie's only in her seventies. Speculative Fiction-Turned Therapy Session The central plot device in Oko's novel is the time-traveling elevator, but the heart of the story is grief, and the characters' complicated feelings around it. Grief doesn't just cast a pall on Emilia's life; it defines her. Even when she's convinced herself otherwise. RELATED: Book Review: When Among Crows Emilia's grief is complex – as grief tends to be – and has additional layers of guilt, which is complicated by her strained relationship with her mother. She's carrying a burden that no one else will accept or even listen to, which leads to Emilia being stuck in life. The only way to get unstuck is by being literally stuck in an elevator. While Oko deftly handles how grief doesn't have an expiry date, she does attempt to shoehorn an 'easy answer' to grief, which is not necessarily realistic. But Just Emilia could be a cathartic read for many dealing with their own grief surrounding a loved one. Just Emilia comes out on June 10 and is available to pre-order on Movie Review: THE UNINVITED Monita has been championing diversity, inclusivity, and representation in entertainment media through her work for over a decade. She is a contributor at Bam Smack Pow, and her bylines have appeared on 3-time Eisner Award-winning publication Women Write About Comics, Geek Girl Authority, HuffPost, (formerly Soundsphere/Screensphere, FanSided's Show Snob, and Vocal. She was also a TV/Movies features writer at Alongside her twin, Monita co-hosts the pop culture podcast Stereo Geeks.
Chicago Tribune
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Highland Park native authors her first novel for middle grade students
Highland Park native Sara F. Shacter loves middle-grade books, science — particularly biology — and nature. She is also interested in how children are affected by relationships. The author explores all those topics in her engrossing first novel for ages 8-12, 'Georgia Watson and the 99 Percent Campaign.' The book is scheduled for release on Oct. 14 from Regal House Publishing/Fitzroy Books. 'I much prefer middle grade to books for adults. I feel like books for kids have a heart and there's always an element of hope,' Shacter explained. In terms of the science aspects of the book, Shacter said, 'I've always been a science-y person. I really enjoy biology in particular, and I'm very much of a climate advocate.' 'Georgia' is the story of a scientific-focused sixth-grader whose family has moved many times. She is thrilled to be staying in the same school for a second year, especially since she has made a special friend, Izzy, who is equally enthusiastic about exploring science and nature. But by accidentally revealing her friend's secret, that friendship is in jeopardy, particularly since a third classmate is determined to 'steal' Georgia's friend. It seems like a hopeless situation until Georgia devises a science-based solution that reveals people are much more alike than they are different. Shacter indicated that because of the deep divisions in our country, she hopes this story will help young readers and the grownups in their lives to focus on what brings us together. It's a cause dear to the author's heart, reflected in Shacter's volunteer work with Braver Angels a nonprofit organization with the goal of 'Bringing Americans together to bridge the partisan divide,' according to their website. 'Braver Angels came to me after the 2016 election,' Shacter said. 'I was struggling a little bit because it seemed like, from everything I saw in the media, that half the country had different values than I did.' She began meeting with a friend's husband, whose views were the opposite of hers, to talk about politics. To her surprise, Shacter discovered, 'We weren't as far apart on things as I would have thought, and when you really got to the why of why somebody believes something, whys often overlap.' She began searching for an organization that allows people to get together and talk across the divide. A friend recommended Braver Angels. Since then, Shacter has helped with their newsletter and attended some of their events. 'What they do so well is bring people together from other sides and have moderated, respectful discussions about why people think the way they do,' she said. 'Georgia Watson and the 99 Percent Campaign' has been a long time in process, Shacter admitted. 'When my (twin) boys were in first grade, was when I first got the idea. They're about to be seniors in college.' Shacter's first work of fiction was the picture book 'Heading to the Wedding' (Red Rock Press). 'I was at a dinner event for my husband's job — he was working at the Museum of Science and Industry at the time,' Shacter related. 'Someone said, 'I'm going to a wedding and I'm trying to find a children's book about what is it like and what you do at a wedding, and I can't find anything.'' Shacter recalled thinking, 'I could write that.' So, she did. That was followed by another picture book, 'Just So Willow' (Sterling Publishing/Union Square). The author said that she focuses on children's books because 'I found that those were the stories I had to tell. I was blessed to have a lovely childhood, and all the stories that came to me just happened to be about kids.' Writing for children also seemed natural because she was a teacher, Shacter added. She taught English at Maine South High School in Park Ridge for 10 years and tutors children from kindergarten through high school. She also served as a contributing editor for the nonfiction children's magazine, 'Ask,' and has written articles for 'Ask,' 'Click,' 'Highlights for Children,' and 'Yes Mag: Canada's Science Magazine for Kids.' For more information about Sara F. Shacter and her books, visit
