“How glorious it is to drown”
Emory sees her brother Joey, being pushed farther and farther by the waves into the deep part, he is drowning, but not in an ocean of water, an ocean of heroin and drug addiction. Emory was a bit invisible to her rich parents, her older sister was seen as perfect, and her brother was always odd, she faced not being heard, and just cast off as another basic rich girl by her peers and society, although she felt alone at times. Joey is cast in by a life of drugs, from his peers, and falls into a deep and darkly explained addiction to heroin. In one of the countless parties Joey attends, Emory tags along, and takes a car ride with her brother, one of his friends, and another girl, what was once an innocent car ride, turns into a death trap. A horrible car crash happens, breaking a leg from Emory, badly injuring Joey, (who had nearly overdosed on heroin) and killing the other girl in the car. Emory now struggles, watching her parents fight to help Joey with his addiction, and she is his keeper, trying to keep him off of drugs, while trying to live her normal life after she recovered from her injury. Emory soon begins to rebel secretly, starting small but soon becoming a larger issue, once her neighbor Gage gets involved, but once Joey’s situation becomes worse, will she be able to help him?
This book treats drug addiction seriously, showing each and every part of the horrible brain-altering process. Glasgow is able to portray all of the people that are affected once a close person has fallen into a drug addiction. Not only is one person struggling to cope, but also all of their friends and family, they feel pain too. The book portrays the actions of young adults realistically, as many of us are untrusting to adults, and especially after trauma. It’s hard to tell the direction that the book will turn, unknowing if it will end in satisfaction or not. The story gives very overwhelming emotions because of the tough decisions all of the characters frequently take. I recommend this book, it gives a peep into the lives of those affected by drug addiction.
By Teen Reviewer, Randy