The Code

September 1, 2003
The Code: The Five Secrets of Teen Success by Mawi Asgedom offers advice for teens about how to succeed in school and beyond. Having overcome enormous obstacles himself during a childhood in war-torn Africa, the author, now a successful motivational speaker, addresses teens in a straightforward no-nonsense way with advice ("Give first, receive second," is secret #3), personal experiences and motivational exercises.

Starred review from July 26, 2004
When psychiatrist Susie Harriott is convicted of murdering Glasgow serial killer Andrew Gow, her husband, Lachlan, embarks on a frantic search for material that may help with her appeal. But in going through her files, he finds layer upon layer of nasty secrets... or does he? Lachlan's diaries tell the dark and complicated story, claiming, variously, both absolute fact and deliberate fantasy. In medical school when he met Susie, Lachlan gave up his day job to be a house husband and dream of being a writer after the birth of their daughter, Margie, now a toddler. Deception (and self-deception) abounds, including the inevitable dalliance between Lachie and the au pair, Yeni, who shares her employer's primal hunger for sticky childhood candies. But it's voice, not event, that grabs hold of the reader and won't let go. Lachlan Harriott immerses us in his obsessions; like Nabokov's Humbert Humbert, he repels and commands sympathy in the same instant. He is a charming, comic, intelligent narrator—and a man who might happily see his wife rot in prison, not for murder, but for the greater sin of rejecting him. Susie herself is seen as if through a long lens that can barely contain her beautiful, sorrowful image; what she did or didn't do is less compelling than what her husband reveals (or invents) about himself in his new life after her conviction. Mystery lovers have lately been looking to Scotland, in part because of Mina's fast-growing reputation; this stunning new work can only bolster the trend. Agent, Henry Dunow
. (Aug.)

Forecast:
A five-city tour and a blurb from George Pelecanos should help introduce Mina to a wider U.S. audience.

November 1, 2003
Gr 7 Up-Motivational speaker Asgedom puts one of his speeches to paper, urging readers to develop their own code of behavior based on what they want from life and what they want to project to the world. He leads by example, and teens will be inspired by his personal story. Asgedom and his family escaped civil war in their East African homeland and spent time in a Sudan refugee camp before coming to the U.S. where they settled in an affluent suburb of Chicago; he later received a scholarship to Harvard. In this easy-to-read, accessible title, he shares his secrets of success. The text is sprinkled with occasional street slang that sounds natural and speaks to its audience without being condescending. Readers standing on the edge of their futures will find that this quick read offers some valuable guidance. Though no new insights are presented (work hard, play fair, be nice to everyone), Asgedom lends a strong male voice to a sea of guides for teens.-Elaine Baran Black, Gwinnett County Public Library, Lawrenceville, GA

Copyright 2003 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2004
Common sense is the basis of Asgedom's five secrets, which advise teens to reconcile their inner beliefs and outer goals in order to achieve accomplishments such as becoming leaders and getting into college. One can only admire Asgedom's ability to distill fundamentally unoriginal ideas into a tidy, manageable package studded with buzzwords (e.g., "Spirit Crushers" and "Spirit Builders"), "Your Turn" assignments, quotes, proverbs, and relevant anecdotes.

(Copyright 2004 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)