Reviewed by Jaglvr for TeensReadToo.com
Irene is thrust into reality when her father loses his high-paying city job. The family has to sell their posh penthouse apartment, and temporarily move to the country with Irene's paternal grandfather. Irene doesn't know what to tell her friends, so she says nothing as the family packs and quietly slips out of the city at the end of the school year.
Irene finds herself settling in at her grandfather's. She always enjoys visiting him and helping him in his greenhouse. But Irene can hear her parents fighting. Her mother hates being in the country, and travels back to the city trying to locate an acceptable new place to live. Irene's mother does not plan on staying long-term in the country.
Irene does what she can to make the best of her situation. Her grandfather gives her a beat-up bike that she uses to explore the surrounding area. It is while she is on one of her excursions that she encounters a group of kids having a grand time in their front yard. When she stops to tie her shoe, a ball comes her way. With a simple question, "Hey, do you play soccer?", life in the small town becomes brighter for Irene.
She meets the oldest brother, Jim, and his quiet sister, Meg. Irene and Meg share similar interests, and Irene soon starts hanging out with Jim, Meg, and their younger siblings.
It isn't until Irene's mom announces she's found a townhouse for them to live in for the year that Irene must fight for what she wants for herself. Throughout everything that has happened in the last few months, she never once had a say in what she wanted to do. With her grandfather's help, Irene learns to stand up for herself and what she wants.
EVERYTHING I WAS may be a short novel, but it's a powerful one. Irene struggles through changes at a time when being a kid is hard enough. The chapters are short, but each one conveys its point nicely. This is the first novel I've read by Ms. Demas. The cover jumped out at me first, but that being said, I have to say that the cover didn't seem to fit the story once I had finished it. But don't let that prevent you from reading EVERYTHING I WAS. The story was worth the read.
Irene is thrust into reality when her father loses his high-paying city job. The family has to sell their posh penthouse apartment, and temporarily move to the country with Irene's paternal grandfather. Irene doesn't know what to tell her friends, so she says nothing as the family packs and quietly slips out of the city at the end of the school year.
Irene finds herself settling in at her grandfather's. She always enjoys visiting him and helping him in his greenhouse. But Irene can hear her parents fighting. Her mother hates being in the country, and travels back to the city trying to locate an acceptable new place to live. Irene's mother does not plan on staying long-term in the country.
Irene does what she can to make the best of her situation. Her grandfather gives her a beat-up bike that she uses to explore the surrounding area. It is while she is on one of her excursions that she encounters a group of kids having a grand time in their front yard. When she stops to tie her shoe, a ball comes her way. With a simple question, "Hey, do you play soccer?", life in the small town becomes brighter for Irene.
She meets the oldest brother, Jim, and his quiet sister, Meg. Irene and Meg share similar interests, and Irene soon starts hanging out with Jim, Meg, and their younger siblings.
It isn't until Irene's mom announces she's found a townhouse for them to live in for the year that Irene must fight for what she wants for herself. Throughout everything that has happened in the last few months, she never once had a say in what she wanted to do. With her grandfather's help, Irene learns to stand up for herself and what she wants.
EVERYTHING I WAS may be a short novel, but it's a powerful one. Irene struggles through changes at a time when being a kid is hard enough. The chapters are short, but each one conveys its point nicely. This is the first novel I've read by Ms. Demas. The cover jumped out at me first, but that being said, I have to say that the cover didn't seem to fit the story once I had finished it. But don't let that prevent you from reading EVERYTHING I WAS. The story was worth the read.
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