It is hard to come across a book like this. At least, it has been for me. The biggest highlight of its ‘difference’ is that the children act their age, and there are no romantic entanglements in this. It is purely a book about friendship, and despite its meagre beginnings, the power it can hold to bring forward positive change.
Our lead protagonists are at the tail end of their schooling. They will need to move on to higher education and all the complications that that entails. Sage is a star athlete and a lynchpin of her volleyball team, her situation unravels over time, whereas with the other character, Len – the issue was quite obvious. The root of Len’s problem is only explained to us in bits and pieces but is still hard to digest. It is a highly emotional read on all counts. The angst is the perfectly acceptable/expected reaction if not the sensible one.
There are no absolute happily ever afters provided, just possibilities of change in the horizon.
It is a short and engaging book, it kept me hooked enough to read it in one sitting. The children act their age, they are mature in a few scenes, where they gather their courage to help another and immature in others from which they sometimes learn and grow. It was a delightful book to read from cover to cover in the morning. Fair warning though, I shed copious tears with it.
I received an ARC thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience.
Superfluous Reading 