The Kids Are Gonna Ask

In Anthony’s brisk coming-of-age story (after Evergreen Tidings from the Baumgartners), a high school podcast project goes viral when the hosts search for their unknown father. Sophomores Thomas and Savannah McClaire have lived with their grandmother, Maggie, in Minneapolis, since the death of their mother, Bess, two years earlier. The twins launch a podcast called McClaire Dinner Salon, documenting conversations between Maggie and her acquaintances. For a year, the twins’ audience plateaus at 300 listeners, until an episode addresses the mystery of their biological father’s identity, which attracts interest from Guava Media and a sensational producer whose credits include It’s Only Murder. As the teens work with Guava, their audience grows and the show attracts national media attention. One of the show’s previous guests, a friend of Bess’s from college, questions the ethics of the show on a talk radio program (“They’re kids. Asking very personal questions about a very private matter”). As Anthony reveals in an early flash-forward, the twins become overwhelmed and lock themselves in Maggie’s house, with protestors and supporters crowding outside. Anthony’s story is full of surprises and thoughtful reflections on the expiration date for family secrets. Like a successfully twisty podcast, this delivers the goods. (May)