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The Truth Project Kindle Edition

by Dante Medema (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 143 ratings
See all formats and editions

“A heart-wrenching quest for identity every YA reader will relate to, and a deep dive into the meaning of family." —Ellen Hopkins, #1 New York Times bestselling author

Debut author Dante Medema explores the emotional fallout after a teenage girl discovers she is the product of an affair. Told through a series of poems, text messages, and emails, this contemporary YA is perfect for fans of Gaby Dunn and Allison Raskin.

Seventeen-year-old Cordelia Koenig intended to breeze through her senior project. While her peers stressed, Cordelia planned to use the same trace-your-roots genealogy idea her older sister used years prior. And getting partnered with her longtime crush, Kodiak Jones, is icing on the cake. All she needs to do is mail in her DNA sample, write about her ancestry results, and get that easy A.

But when Cordelia’s GeneQuest results reveal that her father is not the person she thought he was, but a stranger who lives thousands of miles away, her entire world shatters. Now she isn’t sure of anything—not the mother who lied, the man she calls Dad, or the girl staring back at her in the mirror.

If your life began with a lie, how can you ever be sure of what's true?

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Previous page
  1. Print length
    395 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    Quill Tree Books
  5. Publication date
    October 13, 2020
  6. Reading age
    13 - 17 years
  7. Grade level
    8 - 9
  8. File size
    3750 KB
  9. Page Flip
    Enabled
  10. Word Wise
    Not Enabled
  11. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  12. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Gr 8 Up-High schooler Cordelia plans to coast through her senior project, copying her older sister's idea of taking an ancestry test through GeneQuest, and adding her own spin by exploring the results through her poetry. Cordelia teams up with Kodiak, who's a friend, crush, and fellow poet. Recently, Kodiak's life has been troubled: After finding out that a classmate he impregnated was having an abortion, he drunkenly crashed his mother's car. When work and their project begins and the test reveals that the father she has always known is not her biological father, Cordelia is thrown into emotional turmoil. On a trip to a young poets' conference in Seattle, Cordelia becomes rebellious, drinking and sneaking off, and she ropes Kodiak into helping her track down her father. Set in Alaska where the author lives, this novel is told through Cordelia's poetry and her emails and texts to other characters. Cordelia talks at length to other people, a tactic that allows each character to be fully developed. Poetic elements such as rhythm, similes, and metaphors are well done, and the cast is diverse in many ways: Cordelia's best friend Sana is biracial (one parent is Asian), interested in girls, and lives in a trailer park, and Kodiak's project focuses on stories from his Tlingit heritage. She develops ways of coping, but the descriptions of Cordelia's response to Kodiak's creations are extremely emotionally charged, and readers may struggle to connect. VERDICT A story about family and identity that will appeal to readers who like novels in verse, or books about artistic teens.-Liz Anderson, DC P.L.α(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Review

“The Truth Project is a heart-wrenching quest for identity every YA reader will relate to, and a deep dive into the meaning of family." — Ellen Hopkins, #1 New York Times bestselling author 

"A luminous and lovely novel-in-verse about family, identity, and finding your truth. Cordelia's heart-wrenching quest will captivate readers." — Kathleen Glasgow, New York Times bestselling author of Girl in Pieces and How to Make Friends With the Dark

"The Truth Project explores love, identity, and family in all its beautiful chaos. Wrapped in exquisite, page-turning prose, this book is impossible to put down until the very end." — Rachael Lippincott, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Five Feet Apart

"Dante Medema beautifully weaves together an emotional and riveting story of self-discovery, family, and finding out the truth that's inside us all. A stunning debut."
— Elizabeth Eulberg, international bestselling author of Past Perfect Life

"With luminous writing and characters who feel like friends, The Truth Project is a book with its own gravitational pull. A lyrical, evocative exploration of family, identity, and seeking your truth. Wholly original and totally incandescent." — Laurie Elizabeth Flynn, author of Firsts and All Eyes On Her

"The Truth Project is a brave and beautiful debut, shining with honesty, courage, and hope." — Laura Taylor Namey, author of The Library of Lost Things

A gorgeous, compelling, compulsively readable exploration of family and the truths that define us. I devoured The Truth Project, and I think you will, too. — Jared Reck, author of A Short History of the Girl Next Door

“A captivating, intricately woven story of identity, family, and how we're shaped by our surroundings. From small-town Alaska to gritty Seattle, Cordelia’s search for belonging brims with honesty and heartache. Each lovely word of this novel-in-verse wields a special kind of power.” — Rachel Lynn Solomon, author of Today Tonight Tomorrow

"Gripping. The Truth Project is a fast-paced hybrid novel that blends verse together with texts and emails to paint a picture of a girl trying to figure out who she really is. A great pick for Juleah del Rosario and Sonya Sones fans." — Kip Wilson, author of White Rose

"Poetic elements are well done. A story about family and identity that will appeal to readers who like novels in verse, or books about artistic teens." — School Library Journal

"Delia tells her story through passionate poems, texts, and emails, making for an effective exploration of identity, secrets, and what family means." — Publishers Weekly

"A solid debut novel about truth and personal identity." — Booklist

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B083SNMC2W
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Quill Tree Books (October 13, 2020)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ October 13, 2020
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 3750 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 395 pages
  • Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 0062954407
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 143 ratings

About the author

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Dante Medema

Dante Medema

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Dante Medema is an author of books for young readers. Her debut novel, The Truth Project (HarperTeen / Quill Tree Books) was an Indies Introduce title as well as an Indie Next pick, and was nominated for the YALSA Quick Pick for reluctant readers in 2021. In Spring 2021 she sat as the Writer in Residence at Alaska Pacific University where she has previously guest lectured on publishing. Her sophomore novel is set to publish in spring of 2022. Dante has spoken on a variety of subjects at The Alaska Writers Conference between 2018 and 2020, and sat on the board for The Alaska Writers Guild during those same years. She is an active member of SCBWI Alaska, where she’s presented as a webinar speaker. Dante was a 2020 PitchWars mentor, and is passionate about helping authors meet their goals. She lives in Anchorage, Alaska with her husband, four daughters, two pups, and a room full of alien memorabilia—and books, of course. When she’s not writing, she dabbles in baking, cake decorating, and reading up on enneagram personality types. The Truth Project is available now with Quill Tree Books / HarperCollins.

Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
143 global ratings
Its a must read.
5 Stars
Its a must read.
This book is amazing. Its a young adult book about a girl finding her self. For anyone looking for a great book this is it. I fell in love with the main character. She is someone a lot of people can relate to.
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Top reviews from the United States

Carey Calvert
5.0 out of 5 stars ... love Cordelia.
Reviewed in the United States on February 14, 2021
Verified Purchase
... about 2 weeks ago, I'd finished writing my thoughts about Jason Reynolds' Long Way Down; the lone comment from an author who's as obsessed with Reynolds' work as I am.

But now I'm just as obsessed with that author's work as well. Dante Medema's recently published, TheTruth Project, is a novel in verse; as exquisite as it at times, wrenching.

Seventeen year old Cordelia is a talented poet; however, shy and reserved, she doesn't quite fit in with her school or family: "My parents created everything in the image of a perfect Alaskan family."

From this first verse, Medema lets us know right away something's not quite right. The Truth Project then becomes its own search for said truth, beset by secrets that at once bind, then tear apart, and bind again.

Although I try to spread my YA's over a longer span of time; perhaps one a quarter, mainly to keep my sense of idealism intact as well as my often wavering hope for the future, The Truth Project, my first impulse buy of 2021, evokes beautiful imagery and pathos:

Sana doesn't look mad,
but a strange combination of
confused
and worried,
like she's battling between
spring and winter the way I have.

There,
in the 5-star safety-test-rated Volvo
somewhere between winter and spring
while my phone is filled
with texts ...

The Truth Project is my second YA of the year. and it's only January, which has already been 3 months long. But I expect more magic from Dante Medema, even after she's dusted off winter's frost from this joyous debut.
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Tony
5.0 out of 5 stars I wish this kind of YA had been around when I was a teenager.
Reviewed in the United States on October 19, 2020
Verified Purchase
The Truth Project was an absolute joy to read. I loved the way the story was told through a mix of the main character's perspective, text messages, and emails-- and they all balanced each other out perfectly. I'm not usually a fan of books written in prose, but this felt so natural! From the first few pages, I was completely onboard and believed every instinct Cordelia and her friends had. It's always a sign of a good book for me when I don't want it to end and I want more, and that's exactly what happened with "The Truth Project".
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Sacha
4.0 out of 5 stars Readable and Innovative Concept
Reviewed in the United States on October 14, 2020
3.75 stars

The central focus of this verse novel is on Cordelia - the m.c.'s - senior project and the unexpected havoc it creates in her life.

Cordelia has a relatable (for teens) relationship to her immediate family: difficult. She's the middle child of three sisters and has two parents who seem to be quite close to her. Based on her name and her father's trade as a Shakespearean, she appears to have an especially close bond to him. Her feelings of being alienated from her family seem like the usual angsty business one expects in a YA novel, but there's much more to it.

While the concept and main character are nicely drawn, I kept wanting more from the ancillary characters: especially Kodiak. This guy has a fascinating arc, and I needed more of it. The flashbacks are so sparse, and more in that space would have been invaluable. Additionally, Cordelia's mom is...awful. I needed more development of that storyline and any character at all to say more about what she was and was not doing. I get that Cordelia is supposed to feel isolated - to some degree - on this journey, but the people in her life are too far in to be so far out. They know what is happening with her in many cases and express concern, but they are also somehow too selfish/deluded/busy/??? to really help her. Apparently, they will all have conversations with each other about her, but they can't seem to really have a timely, meaningful interaction with HER. This drove me slightly bananas.

I will absolutely read more from this author and look forward to it, and I'll recommend this to students because of its innovative concept and inarguable readability, but I hope I get more from the characters in Medema's next work.
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Brennet
5.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully written, completely invested in the characters
Reviewed in the United States on October 18, 2020
Verified Purchase
My first ever actual review....but this one is worth it. So beautifully written. I started the book, and couldn’t stop until it was over. I think I’ll still be emotionally invested in these characters for a whole bit.

Again, beautifully written. I felt so connected to the characters. The writing style was so different, I was actually worried I might have a hard time getting into it. I was obviously wrong. What a beautiful story.
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sally trotta sullivan
5.0 out of 5 stars What a journey
Reviewed in the United States on October 18, 2020
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Wonderful novel from a debut author. My daughter read it and insisted I read it too. I am so glad I did. Cordelia, Kodiak and Sana are characters that you automatically care about. The writing is poetic and lyrical. It’s a journey to find what it means to be your authentic self. I wish there was a little more background on Kodiak’s Tlingit background. The novel is lovely and a pleasure to read. Ms. Medema is an author to watch.
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JCK
5.0 out of 5 stars I adored this beautiful book
Reviewed in the United States on October 13, 2020
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Told using mixed media, this book captures the typical teenager feeling of not belonging overlaid with the more serious issue of a girl grappling with a very unexpected result from her DNA test. I am fully TEAM KODIAK!!! I highly recommend this book for all teens!!
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Elisabeth
5.0 out of 5 stars A must read
Reviewed in the United States on January 10, 2021
Verified Purchase
Dante Medema’s debut novel is breathtaking in a way that makes you look a little harder at the world around you. Every time I read her book, I find myself tearing up for a different reason every time. It’s a quick read that’ll have you holding your breath with every line.
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