Upstate by Kalisha Buckhanon

Can love survive a murder conviction and a prison sentence upstate?  That’s what Natasha and Antonio are about to find out.  When Antonio is convicted of murder and sent to prison, he and Natasha write letters to each other and attempt to keep their love alive through years of fear, violence, growth, and learning, after which neither of them will ever be the same.  Are their letters enough to keep them together?  Or, after years of separation and changes, will their love eventually die in that prison Upstate?

Natasha and Antonio are two teenagers in love whose letters to each other illustrate their worlds of poverty, violence, love, hope, and despair in Harlem and in prison.  At times moving, violent, raw, and heartfelt, this is a powerful story of love and life in impossible circumstances.  Due to some violence and sexual content, this book is recommended for older young adult readers in public or school libraries.

Awards

2006 American Library Association ALEX Award
2006 Audio Publishers Association Award in Literary Fiction

Learn More

Learn more about Buckhanon and her other books by visiting her blog. You can also connect with her on Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, WordPress, and MySpace.  She also has a YouTube channel.

Listen to an excerpt from Upstate below:

You can also watch Buckhanon read an excerpt from her second novel, Conception:

 Watch Part 2 of the video.

Buckhanon, Kalisha. Upstate. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2005. Print.

978-0312332693; Paperback; $11.00; 247 pages

Also available in hardback, audiobook, and ebook formats.