What an amazing, heart-tugging story! Carey and her little sister Janessa have lived deep in a state forest with their meth and alcohol addicted mother. Carey has been living there for nine years struggling to survive and keep her little sister safe and fed. Their mother has become more and more unreliable, leaving them for long periods of time, and beating and burning them when she is there. When the story begins, Carey and Janessa have been on their own for two months. Then, out of the woods, comes a social worker and Carey's father. It seems their mother had sent a message saying she couldn't take care of the kids and giving vague directions about where to find them. Carey and Janessa have to adjust to a whole world they don't know anything about. Carey's father takes them home where he introduces them to his wife Melissa and his stepdaughter Delaney. Carey had been told over and over again by her mother that she had taken her from her father because he beat them both. She is very distrustful of him and worried for Janessa. Janessa had gone selectively mute after a traumatic incident a year before while the girls were still in the forest. Watching Carey cope with her new world—including her first experience with attending school—and seeing her strength and growth made this an excellent story of courage and survival. I loved watching her slowly begin to trust her new family.Fans of contemporary fiction on the gritty side will really enjoy this story.
