The Cost of Knowing
Written by Brittney Morris
Narrated by Kevin R. Free
4/5
()
About this audiobook
Four starred reviews!
Dear Martin meets They Both Die at the End in this gripping, evocative novel about a Black teen who has the power to see into the future, whose life turns upside down when he foresees his younger brother’s imminent death, from the acclaimed author of SLAY.
Sixteen-year-old Alex Rufus is trying his best. He tries to be the best employee he can be at the local ice cream shop; the best boyfriend he can be to his amazing girlfriend, Talia; the best protector he can be over his little brother, Isaiah. But as much as Alex tries, he often comes up short.
It’s hard to for him to be present when every time he touches an object or person, Alex sees into its future. When he touches a scoop, he has a vision of him using it to scoop ice cream. When he touches his car, he sees it years from now, totaled and underwater. When he touches Talia, he sees them at the precipice of breaking up, and that terrifies him. Alex feels these visions are a curse, distracting him, making him anxious and unable to live an ordinary life.
And when Alex touches a photo that gives him a vision of his brother’s imminent death, everything changes.
With Alex now in a race against time, death, and circumstances, he and Isaiah must grapple with their past, their future, and what it means to be a young Black man in America in the present.
Editor's Note
One of contemporary YA’s greats…
Through a fantastical twist, Brittney Morris (“SLAY”) shows exactly how high a toll sexism and racism take on a young Black boy. Whenever Alex touches anything, he can briefly see into the future — a glimpse of how he will break up with the girlfriend he loves, a vision of how his brother will die. The key to confronting these frightening futures requires learning from the past and staying in the present. Morris’ sophomore effort cements her place as one of contemporary YA’s greats.
Brittney Morris
Brittney Morris is the author of SLAY, The Cost of Knowing, and The Jump, and has written video game narrative for Insomniac Games’s Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 for PlayStation 5, Unknown Worlds’s Subnautica: Below Zero, and Soma Games’s The Lost Legends of Redwall. She is the founder and former president of the Boston University Creative Writing Club. She holds a BA in economics. You can find her online at AuthorBrittneyMorris.com and on Twitter or Instagram @BrittneyMMorris.
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Reviews for The Cost of Knowing
83 ratings3 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I really like how it explores seeing the future power in a unique way. Kept me reading for a while. First book by Brittney.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dope book. Had a few dry spots but I ultimately enjoyed the story and its message.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5It was a good story but you kinda knew how it was going to end from the start.
1 person found this helpful