The Protected
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- £8.99
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- £8.99
Publisher Description
In a family torn apart by grief and guilt, one girl's struggle to come to terms with years of torment shows just how long old wounds can take to heal.
I have three months left to call Katie my older sister. Then the gap will close and I will pass her. I will get older. But Katie will always be fifteen, eleven months and twenty-one days old.
Hannah's world is in pieces and she doesn't need the school counselor to tell her she has deep-seated psychological issues. With a seriously depressed mother, an injured dad, and a dead sister, who wouldn't have problems? Hannah should feel terrible but for the first time in ages, she feels a glimmer of hope and isn't afraid anymore. Is it because the elusive Josh is taking an interest in her? Or does it run deeper than that?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
High school has been a nightmare for 15-year-old Hannah McCann: awkward and vulnerable, she's become the target of cruel taunts and pranks. Hannah has also lost her best friend to a group of popular girls, and she receives little support from her social-climbing older sister, Katie, who thinks Hannah needs to stop taking "everything so seriously." Instead of following her sister's advice, Hannah withdraws. When Katie is killed in a car accident, and the teasing at school abruptly stops, Hannah retreats even further, overwhelmed by a combination of relief and sorrow. In so doing, she almost misses the opportunity to find a true friend in new student Josh, who is determined to draw her out into the world. In this frank tale of a teenager's complicated feelings and emotional defenses, Australian author Zorn shows the devastating effects of bullying while affectingly tracing Hannah's spiritual journey, coming to terms with truths she doesn't want to face and learning how to trust. Although much of the novel is tinged with sadness, there are meaningful flickers of hope as Hannah gains courage and strength. Ages 14 up.
