Going Under

GOING UNDER by Kathe Koja explores the psychological angles of a faltering brother/sister relationship. Hilly and Ivan have always been close. Raised by what Hilly calls "semi-useless" parents, both brother and sister would probably argue they raised themselves. Hilly is sent to a therapist to help her work her way through the emotional aftermath of a friend's suicide. The first therapist is unsuccessful in reaching Hilly, so her older brother helps to find a new doctor. But does the new doctor have Hilly's best interests in mind--or his own? Kathe Koja uses the myths of Peresephone and Narcissus to illustrate the siblings relationship. Hilly's brother Ivan tells his parents and his sister he is attempting to save Hilly from being dragged into the darkness. At the same time Ivan's own warped self-image causes him to become entangled with the therapist's scheme to use Hilly's journal writings as material for his own book. Readers with a knowledge of the ancient myths will be treated to an interesting twist on the meanings of the old tales. Koja's book would work well and provide fuel for discussion in a high school lit class focusing on different interpretations of these classical stories. Reviewed by: Sally Kruger, aka "Readingjunky"

Kathe Koja, Going Under (Frances Foster Books, 2006) Kathe Koja excels at whatever she chooses to write. First it was horror (The Cipher, Skin), then human drama (Strange Angels, Kink). Then, a few years back, she turned her attention to the young adult novel, and immediately popped up with one of the best in the genre in a very long time, Straydog. She's stayed with the YA books since, and while they've all been very, very good, Going Under doesn't quite have the stay-up-all-night zing of Skin or Straydog. That doesn't make it any less good on a general level, it just means that when you compare it to other Kathe Koja novels, it's kind of midpack. The story is told from two different perspectives, that of Hillary, who is dealing with the suicide of a friend, and her brother Ivan, who's watching his sister implode. Hillary is not a fan of therapy. When she refuses to go back to her first therapist, Ivan finds another thanks to a chance encounter, and both Ivan and Hillary are drawn into the new therapist's world-- but is he who he claims to be? Koja flirts now and again with the existential horror of her first few novels in the YA world she's come to inhabit, most effectively in The Blue Mirror, and she does it here again. I'm not talking about "horror" in the monsters-and-supernatural-stuff sense here, but in the depravity inherent in the human soul. It's something she does very well, but she usually has a more compelling story in which to do it. It's still a fine novel, but it's not really up to the standard Koja has been setting for herself for the past decade and a half. *** ½