The Golden Hour by Niki Smith

 

A week ago, I read The Golden Hour by Niki Smith. This realistic graphic novel is about Manuel Soto, a boy who was the sole witness of a school shooting before spring break. When he returns to school following the break, he is struggling with anxiety, but copes through photography. With his cell phone camera, he finds anchors to keep himself grounded. After his substitute art teacher assigns a group project, Manuel befriends his partners, Sebastian and Caysha. The three of them go to the cattle farm of Sebastian's family, where Manuel finds comfort and enjoys being around the newborn calf that Sebastian is hand-raising. Sebastian even invites Manuel to join Ag-Club. Over the next few months, Manuel not only helps Sebastian and Caysha prepare for the county fair, but decides to take photographs to submit for a photography award. As he spends time with his new friends, he begins to open up, confront his deepest fears, and fall in love for the first time.

Although this book deals with a tough topic, I truly enjoyed reading it. With all the recent school shootings in the United States, the story felt particularly important and I could understand Manuel's anxiety, especially how loud noises would trigger him. I liked that he was going to therapy and found a coping mechanism that worked for him by taking photographs. It was especially cool that he used the techniques that his art teacher, Ms. Winstone, taught him. Unfortunately, I was devastated upon learning that Manuel actually witnessed her being shot even though she survived because of Manuel's quick thinking to pull the fire alarm. The flashback was intense and difficult to read and I felt awful for both Ms. Winstone and Manuel. However, what I loved the most about The Golden Hour was the friendships that Manuel formed with Sebastian and Caysha. Even though I'm not much of a farm person myself, going to the county fair was fun when I was younger and it made me happy that Sebastian, Caysha, and Manuel each had a different contest for which to prepare so that they weren't in direct competition with each other. Sebastian had his calf, Daisy, Caysha had her fancy chickens, and of course, Manuel had photography. The other thing I especially liked was the use of color. The cover is gorgeous and I thought the night and sunset scenes were very pretty. Not to mention, the flashbacks being in black and white with yellow streaks were striking. The contrast to the other illustrations added to the fear that Manuel felt when remembering what happened. All in all, I'd recommend The Golden Hour to anyone who enjoys friendship stories that include tough topics, like gun violence.