Quarantine: A Love Story

Gr 6–9—Flora and Oliver, high school students traveling from the Dominican Republic, meet by chance on an airplane. Unfortunately, Oliver's original seatmate is ill with a new form of mononucleosis, so when they land, all passengers are detained for testing. In a desperate move for attention, Flora rubs the thermometer to show a fever and impetuously kisses Oliver. The two are quarantined together. Thus begins their flirtatious, push-and-pull romance. Despite the intriguing premise, flaws abound. The voices of the two leads, who narrate in alternating chapters, are indistinct. The young doctor, Joey, is more intent on getting a date or a medical journal write-up than about health care. Kelsey, Oliver's so-called girlfriend, is a one-dimensional, self-centered media junkie. None of these characters have flesh to their skeletal structures. Also, unbelievable situations (and issues of consent) are stretched to the breaking point.