Have You Seen Luis Velez? ⭑⭑⭑⭑⭑

Genre: Literary Fiction

US Publication: May 21, 2019

Print: 315 pages

Audio: 11 hours 30 minutes

Confetti Rating: 5 stars

REVIEW:

Hold on a minute as I go collect all the pieces of my heart that exploded while reading Have You Seen Luis Velez?…

I don’t know why I waited so long to read this novel. Okay, I do know. It’s the cover. Something about staring down orthopedic shoes kept turning me off, despite rave review after rave review. But I’m here as the 101st person to tell you to just turn to page one and start this story about a Black teen who steps in to help a little old woman navigate the streets of New York while she in turn helps him navigate the hardships of life.

Very simply put, this is why I read. If you’re human and ask me for a book recommendation in the near or distant future, this will be my answer. All the stars for Catherine Ryan Hyde’s tale about friendship, self acceptance, compassion and empathy. We can all benefit from walking a mile in someone else's shoes (even if they’re orthopedic).

Have You Seen Luis Velez is currently available on Kindle Unlimited with WhisperSync for those who may prefer listening on audio. (As of 1/22/21.)

PUBLISHER SYNOPSIS:

Raymond Jaffe feels like he doesn't belong. Not with his mother's new family. Not as a weekend guest with his father and his father's wife. Not at school, where he's an outcast. After his best friend moves away, Raymond has only two real connections: to the feral cat he's tamed and to a blind ninety-two-year-old woman in his building who's introduced herself with a curious question: Have you seen Luis Velez?

Mildred Gutermann, a German Jew who narrowly escaped the Holocaust, has been alone since her caretaker disappeared. She turns to Raymond for help, and as he tries to track Luis down, a deep and unexpected friendship blossoms between the two.

Despondent at the loss of Luis, Mildred isolates herself further from a neighborhood devolving into bigotry and fear. Determined not to let her give up, Raymond helps her see that for every terrible act the world delivers, there is a mirror image of deep kindness, and Mildred helps Raymond see that there's hope if you have someone to hold on to.