Helpful Score: 1
Summary:
Evan is attempting to deal with his father's suicide. There is a lot of anger built up because he didn't understand how his father could kill himself when nothing seemed to be that bad. In comes grandma with a key that opens up a trunk his father had when he was a teenager. Evan opens the trunk and begins to dive into his father's childhood. As he investigates, he finds out a lot of difficult times that gives him more clues to what his father may have been dealing with. Along with this, his best friend is sticking by his side and adding in moments of humor and possibly a little of a love interest. As Evan develops as a person, he learns more about his father, his family, and most of all, himself.
My thoughts:
I need to stop reading such sad books. This was a super tough read. A lot of very personal issues popped up for me as I was going through it. I tend to stay away from books that describe sexual abuse because it is a difficult issue for me to deal with. Even though there is a positive conclusion, I was still crying through several scenes. I was mixed between wanting it to end and wanting to keep going. In most cases, I don't recommend putting these books out in my classroom libraries. This is something I would give to select students. I really wish there was some mention of the sexual abuse within the summary, even though it may have led to me not reading it. It's just nice to know up front before dealing with such explicit material. Bring tissues and dive into Evan's world. Join him as he makes discoveries about his family history that may just make us all breathless.
Evan is attempting to deal with his father's suicide. There is a lot of anger built up because he didn't understand how his father could kill himself when nothing seemed to be that bad. In comes grandma with a key that opens up a trunk his father had when he was a teenager. Evan opens the trunk and begins to dive into his father's childhood. As he investigates, he finds out a lot of difficult times that gives him more clues to what his father may have been dealing with. Along with this, his best friend is sticking by his side and adding in moments of humor and possibly a little of a love interest. As Evan develops as a person, he learns more about his father, his family, and most of all, himself.
My thoughts:
I need to stop reading such sad books. This was a super tough read. A lot of very personal issues popped up for me as I was going through it. I tend to stay away from books that describe sexual abuse because it is a difficult issue for me to deal with. Even though there is a positive conclusion, I was still crying through several scenes. I was mixed between wanting it to end and wanting to keep going. In most cases, I don't recommend putting these books out in my classroom libraries. This is something I would give to select students. I really wish there was some mention of the sexual abuse within the summary, even though it may have led to me not reading it. It's just nice to know up front before dealing with such explicit material. Bring tissues and dive into Evan's world. Join him as he makes discoveries about his family history that may just make us all breathless.
