Perfect Escape
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- $19.99
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- $19.99
Publisher Description
Kendra has always felt overshadowed by her older brother, Grayson, whose OCD forces him to live a life of carefully coordinated routines. To Kendra, the only way she can stand out next to Grayson is to be perfect, and she has perfection down to an art -- until a cheating scandal threatens her flawless reputation.
Behind the wheel of her car, with Grayson asleep beside her, Kendra decides to drive away from it all -- with enough distance, maybe she'll be able to figure everything out. But even in the midst of the road trip's flat tires, gas-station food stops, and detours to quirky roadside attractions, eventually Kendra must stop running and come to terms with herself, her brother, and her past.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The bond between a brother and sister is stretched to the breaking point in this well-crafted road-trip drama born out of intense family pressures and questionable decisions. Seventeen-year-old Kendra defines herself by two things: her drive for academic and personal perfection, and her older brother Grayson's severe obsessive-compulsive disorder. She has lived her life around keeping Grayson under control and out of trouble, even as his condition drives away her best friend, Zoe. When a cheating scandal threatens to destroy Kendra's academic standing, she snaps, dragging Grayson on a cross-country trip from Missouri to California in an ill-defined attempt to "fix" both their lives. Instead, they find an endless series of seedy motels, pick up a hitchhiker who has her own problems, and have some cathartic heart-to-hearts. Brown (Bitter End) skillfully navigates the emotional complexities and psychological minefields of her characters and their relationship, treating OCD with delicacy without losing sight of the big picture. There is no neat solution to the problems Kendra and Grayson face, but the journey is well worth it. Ages 12 up.
