Almost Home by Jessica Blank
If your looking for a Cinderella fairy tale with a happy ending this isn’t the book for you. But if you're interested in something real and meaningful, this is right down your alley.
Almost Home tells the story of seven young people living on the streets of Hollywood. They are all there for different reasons, but most of them have fled abusive homes. There are seven parts or chapters to the book. Each chapter is told in one of their perspectives.
Their stories are so real and raw. There is rough language and gritty details of sex and drug use. What disturbed me the most was Eeyore’s story. She was only twelve years old when she fled her home because she was being sexually abused by her step brother and tormented by the kids at school. Her home is so close, yet she would rather live on the streets and go days without food then enable herself to live in the world she left.
It was eye-opening story for me, when I think of someone homeless a teenage runaway doesn’t pop into my head. Yet this is an issue that affects more than 1.5 million teens. Amongst all the books I’ve read of the elite and fortunate it was refreshing and at the same time deeply disturbing to read about the other end of the spectrum.
I truly admire Jessica’s compassion for this subject and even more so for bringing this topic to attention. This is one of those books that will make an impact on the way you think of the world. I hope to see more from Jessica Blank in the future.