Photo by Kenneth Johnson
Author of Before, After, and Somebody in Between . My second novel for teens, SAY THE WORD will be published by Bloomsbury in Winter 2009.You can now keep in touch with me on my Live Journal ELUSIVE SANITY or visit MY WEBSITEAn August 2007 BORDERS ORIGINAL VOICE
A 2008 New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age A School Library Journal "Remarkable Read"Fourteen-year-old Martha dreams of two things--becoming a cellist, and escaping the chaotic life she shares with her alcoholic mom. But when cataclysmic events send her into the arms of a wealthy, caring family, she learns that “normal†doesn’t mean “perfectâ€â€”and that everyone has secrets, some of them worse than your own.
I set the gun on my dresser. How weird it looks, lying there on top of a colorful pile of hair scrunchies, between my copy of Romeo and Juliet and my Algebra II workbook. I look at it for a long time, then take a deep breath, reach over, and pick it up back up.
This time, it’s easier, and the longer I hold the gun, the less I’m afraid. I rotate it cautiously around in my hands, then flop back on my bed and rest it on my stomach, enjoying the weight, the certainty of safety.
And not a single drop of fear. Click here to Order from AMAZON
Is somebody else's drinking or drugging making you SICK SICK SICK???Check out ALATEEN ... answer the questions.Don't wait till it's too late.NEW! YA BOOKS CENTRAL: "Sometimes, a book will come along that very quietly, very subtly changes your life. It shifts the world on its axis just enough to send you reeling—just enough to skew your perspective and have an impact on the way you think...This is one of those books".Read the full review at YA BOOKS CENTRALMIDWEST BOOK REVIEWS: An hour into her first day of tenth grade, Martha knows she's in trouble: the school bully has threatened her life and her home life is in shambles. She wants to play cello – but even music is dangerous, until a wealthy lawyer provides a possible key to moving away from her dangerous life. A poignant story of a girl's struggle to be some(body and to) escape danger evolves in a complex plot highly recommended for older teens.PUBLISHERS WEEKLY: There isn't much that doesn't happen to Martha Kowalski, the 14-year-old protagonist in Garsee's down and dirty debut... Garsee's unwillingness to tie things up neatly lends the story realism and poignancy. Ages 14-up. (July)"Fans of Mary Pearson's A Room on Lorelei Street (2005) will be a good target for Garsee's look at another troubled teen trying to escape... Teens will inevitably find Martha a compelling character and will root for her..." BOOKLIST "This gritty story has great appeal." Kirkus Reviews"...packed with tension...this book is Martha's journey home--not to the places she lived, but her journey home to herself. (Garsee) knows about what she is writing and she leaves out nothing. Her work is painfully realistic, and she does not write "nice" because there are too many youth who struggle through such an existence..." VOYA"Garsee...tells this disturbing-yet-poignant tale of overcoming seemingly insurmountable obstacles with a clear voice and authenticity... Edgy, with realistically frank language, this dark young adult novel addresses drug and alcohol abuse, sex, violence, poverty, and urban life without sensationalism or rationalization and is sure to provoke discussion and increased awareness of what many teens face daily." Childrens Literature
"BEFORE, AFTER, AND SOMEBODY IN BETWEEN is a gritty and realistic tale of a girl trying to escape her parent's poor choices and make a life for herself. Told unflinchingly in the first person, Garsee doesn't hesitate from portraying teen violence, sex, and drug and alcohol use as the traps that they can be, but she does so with gentle humor and a compassionate eye. Martha is a flawed heroine, coming to terms with her own faults and the addictive tendencies she may have inherited from her mother, but readers will root for her to succeed..."
See the full review from TeensReadToo! " BEFORE, AFTER, AND SOMEBODY IN BETWEEN is an amazing action- and danger-filled plot-driven contemporary YA urban tale in which we find that alcoholic parents -- whether rich or poor -- can thoroughly poison their kids' lives, that it is not always easy to just say no, and that in the face of really bad stuff going down, some teens will make it to a better day while others are swallowed by the cracks."See the full review from RICHIE'S PICKS"Jeannine Garsee's debut novel, BEFORE, AFTER, AND SOMEBODY IN BETWEEN addresses abuse in various forms - alcohol, pills, verbal, physical - as well as recovery and redemption. Though no one is ever fully healed nor redeemed, that makes it all the more realistic."For full author interview, click on BILDUNGSROMAN
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