Description
A poignant coming-of-age YA featuring an Indigenous teen girl grappling with the effects of intergenerational trauma while navigating school, family and young love, by the bestselling author of Weird Rules to Follow.
It is 1990. Morgan has lived all her life in the small fishing town of Prince Rupert in northern British Columbia. Ever since her mom took off when she was ten, Morgan has kept an eye on her dad, a commercial fisherman who works hard and occasionally parties even harder. After struggling to keep up and find a place at a public high school, Morgan's best friend Skye convinces her to attend an alternate school.
There, she meets Nate. Both cute and intelligent, Nate introduces her to a wider worldview, including music, movies and books, and becomes a lifeline after an unimaginable tragedy strikes. In the aftermath, Morgan learns hard truths about her mother's painful past and the resulting intergenerational effects of that trauma, and as she struggles to come to terms with her new reality, an unexpected development offers a chance of a fresh start, with love and forgiveness at its core.
It is 1990. Morgan has lived all her life in the small fishing town of Prince Rupert in northern British Columbia. Ever since her mom took off when she was ten, Morgan has kept an eye on her dad, a commercial fisherman who works hard and occasionally parties even harder. After struggling to keep up and find a place at a public high school, Morgan's best friend Skye convinces her to attend an alternate school.
There, she meets Nate. Both cute and intelligent, Nate introduces her to a wider worldview, including music, movies and books, and becomes a lifeline after an unimaginable tragedy strikes. In the aftermath, Morgan learns hard truths about her mother's painful past and the resulting intergenerational effects of that trauma, and as she struggles to come to terms with her new reality, an unexpected development offers a chance of a fresh start, with love and forgiveness at its core.
Author Bio
Kim Spencer is an award-winning, bestselling author. Her debut novel, Weird Rules to Follow, received a Kirkus starred review and was a 2023 Governor General's Literary Award finalist. The book won multiple awards, including a 2023 TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award, a 2023 Jean Little First-Novel Award and a 2024 Pacific Northwest Book Award. It was also on the IBBY 2024 Honour List and the USBBY Outstanding International Books List in 2023. Kim is from the Gitxaała Nation and lives in northwest BC.
Review Quotes
"Gitxaała Nation author Spencer (I Won’t Feel This Way Forever) deploys frank, realistic portrayals of residential schools, sexual violence, and suicide in this emotionally raw novel about a white and Indigenous teen in 1990 British Columbia struggling to navigate shifting relationships upon uncovering harsh truths about her family’s past. . . . Short chapters and breezy language relay this somber rumination on family and its influence on finding one’s place in the world." —Publishers Weekly
"Spencer writes with sincerity about a 'fictionalized Indigenous community,' examining how intergenerational trauma from residential schools affected families. The short, easily digestible chapters sustain an effective pace, and Morgan is a realistically drawn teen with conflicting emotions, desires, and needs. A moving rendition of growing up in tumultuous times and circumstances." —Kirkus Reviews
"Readers will understand Morgan’s highs and lows, sympathize when life is hard, and cheer her on when she makes lemonade out of lemons. . . . A great historical fiction addition for libraries needing more books for reluctant readers." —School Library Journal
"A look into a life marred by tragedies, both her own and bigger, more consequential ones she's still trying to fully understand." —Booklist
"Spencer writes with sincerity about a 'fictionalized Indigenous community,' examining how intergenerational trauma from residential schools affected families. The short, easily digestible chapters sustain an effective pace, and Morgan is a realistically drawn teen with conflicting emotions, desires, and needs. A moving rendition of growing up in tumultuous times and circumstances." —Kirkus Reviews
"Readers will understand Morgan’s highs and lows, sympathize when life is hard, and cheer her on when she makes lemonade out of lemons. . . . A great historical fiction addition for libraries needing more books for reluctant readers." —School Library Journal
"A look into a life marred by tragedies, both her own and bigger, more consequential ones she's still trying to fully understand." —Booklist
Biographical note
KIM SPENCER is an award-winning, bestselling author. Her debut novel, Weird Rules to Follow, won multiple awards, including the 2024 Pacific Northwest Book Award, the 2023 TD Canadian Children's Literature Award, and the 2023 Jean Little First-Novel Award. Named to both the USBBY Outstanding International Books list as well as the IBBY Honour List, the book also received a Kirkus starred review and was a 2023 Governor General's Literary Award finalist. Kim is from the Gitxaala Nation and lives in northwest British Columbia.
