Marks, Janae. On Air with Zoe Washington. New York: Katherine Tegen Books, 2023.
ISBN-13: 978-0063212312 | $19.99 USD | 293 pages | MG Contemporary
Blurb
Two years ago, Zoe Washington helped clear Marcus’ name for a crime he didn’t commit. Now her birth father has finally been released from prison and to an outpouring of community support, so everything should be perfect.
When Marcus reveals his dream of opening his own restaurant, Zoe becomes determined to help him achieve it—with her as his pastry chef of course. However, starting a new place is much more difficult than it looks, and Marcus is having a harder time re-entering society than anyone expected.
Set on finding a solution, Zoe starts a podcast to bring light to the exonerees’ experiences and fundraise for their restaurant. After all, Zoe knows full well the power of using her voice. But with waning public interest in their story, will anyone still be listening?
In the series
#1 From the Desk of Zoe Washington
Review
5 stars
On Air with Zoe Washington is the perfect follow-up to Zoe and Marcus’ story. While the prior book works perfectly well as a standalone, this book adds to their story, further touching on topics related to the justice system’s impact, this time on the formerly incarcerated, many of whom are facing obstacles and societal biases upon their release, whether they’ve been exonerated, as Marcus was at the end of the last book, or if they were truly guilty.
I appreciate how Zoe has to go on a journey of confronting these biases over the course of the story. Her experience helping Marcus has inspired her to want to speak about helping exonerees, but her father’s compassion towards others who did offend and went to prison for it helps challenge her thinking. She also meets a new friend, whose mother is in prison for drug-related offenses, which further helps to shape her perspective that the formerly incarcerated should be given a chance, and the resources to avoid falling back into their old patterns.
I also love her big heart when it comes to her interpersonal relationships with others. She deeply wants to help Marcus with his second chance, including opening a restaurant together, which forms a major part of the plot, in tandem with her growing insight and advocacy for formerly incarcerated people. But she’s also aware of how her special bond with Marcus has impacted the time she used to spend with her other family members, including the father who raised her, and I love that she takes time out to make things up to him, even if he doesn’t complain. And while she’s initially conflicted when her two best friends confess to liking each other romantically, and what that will mean for their friendship with her (especially if things end up souring between them), she still encourages them to go out.
I loved this book, possibly even more than the first, and I’d recommend it to anyone looking for a socially-conscious middle grade contemporary.
Author Bio
Janae Marks is the New York Times bestselling author of middle grade novels From the Desk of Zoe Washington,On Air with Zoe Washington and A Soft Place to Land. She has an MFA in Writing for Children from The New School, and lives in Connecticut with her husband, daughter and miniature schnauzer named Cookie.
Janae is part of Black Creators HQ and Renegades of Middle Grade.
Buy links
Bookshop (affiliate link)
Courtney Reads Romance 