4 out of 4 stars
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Gang violence is a constant and problematic threat that exists in our world. The bigger problem is that we’re losing more of our children to gangs. A lot of people join gangs not simply for the power or money. They join gangs for a sense of belonging. The gang becomes their family and they will do anything to protect and stay in that family. In Jessica Therrien’s Carry Me Home, readers are introduced to three characters whose lives dramatically change because of their introduction to gangs, drugs violence and tragedy.
Rachel Wilcox is a mother who has had enough of living in fear of her drunkard of a husband. When he finally commits an act of violence on her, she packs up her two daughters and goes off to create a new life for them. She soon realizes that packing up and leaving isn’t that easy when you’re a single mother trying to get your own life together and help fix the lives of your daughters.
Seventeen-year-old Ruth Wilcox is the oldest daughter. She is rational and level-headed, but has extreme social anxiety. Her anxiety causes her to constantly be alone and she has a hard time making friends. She dreams of someday falling in love and being able to do all the things that she loves without fear. When her family starts to fall apart, it’s up to her to aid her mother in reeling in her younger sister, Lucy. How is she supposed to live her life and fix her own issues when she has to deal with everyone else’s?
Lucy Wilcox is the one who takes the family’s separation the hardest. After years of being afraid her father’s drunken tirades, fifteen-year-old Lucy just wants an escape from everything that is reminder of it. She finds that escape in a local gang known as VC. Her life starts to take a turn for the worse when she encounters gun fights, rape and drugs. Even when she manages to escape the gang, she still finds herself enticed by a life full of rebellion. Lucy is so deep into the life, she isn’t sure how she’ll get out, whether it be alive or dead.
The plot of Carry Me Home is well-paced and written. The author creates a compelling tale of the lives of Rachel and her daughters. I’m not a big fan of books with multiple protagonists because I feel like there won’t be any concrete development of character. In this book, the use of multiple protagonists was needed as this was the kind of story that needed to be told at all angles and from different perspectives. Each character was well developed and readers will find something in all three of them that is relatable and likable.
I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. The only negative that I will give is that I felt there could have been more to the conclusion of the book. There were many things I wanted to know about the characters’ lives after a time skip in the story. Even though I’m not a big fan of the ending, I certainly enjoyed the journey that I took while reading the book. I would recommend this book to both a teenage and adult audience. I feel like this is the kind of book that many people can relate to in some shape or form. This book was an enticing read.
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Carry Me Home
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