Home by Brenda Kearns

Synopsis:

It’s Allie’s 14th birthday, and she’s in her 17th foster home. “Suck it up,” her mom says. “Play the game and they’ll let you come home.” And Allie’s great at the game—at lying about her mom’s drinking, at hiding the weird things her little brother does that worry social workers, at pretending the counseling is actually helping. Allie is so great at the game that she never has to stay in a foster home more than three months.

Now Allie has a problem: Her newest foster family has caught on to her game. They see right through her lies, and they’re trying to stop her from going back home. Ever. Yet the last place Allie wants to live is on a smelly old farm in the middle of nowhere.

But how do you fight it when everyone around you is saying that where you were born isn’t where you belong?

HOME is a touching tale about a girl struggling to reunite her family, protect her young siblings and gain control of her life—all in the face of family problems that no one believes she can fix.


My Review: 3 Stars

*I received an ARC of Home in exchange for my unbiased opinion*

Home really wasn't what I was expecting. I did not like Allie at all. I totally agreed with Jonathan when he kept calling her a witch and asking where her broom was. But I guess you weren't supposed to like her. She was just doing everything she could to get herself, Madeleine and Luke back to their mom. Her mom is an alcoholic who will do what she wants, when she wants and no one can tell her otherwise. It was all a game to her. She would act the way she was supposed to, get her kids home, revert back to her old ways and then Social Services would come and take the kids away... again. I don't think it was fair to Allie at all. She is 14 years old and should still be able to enjoy her childhood instead of being the parent to her younger siblings.

I really liked JoJo. She was very loving and patient with Allie, Madeleine and Luke. You could tell that she truly wanted the best for them and knew that their mom was not it. I also really liked Arthur and Jonathan. They were great with Madeleine and Luke. And, even though Allie was a brat throughout the entire book, they still went out of their way to help her whether she accepted it or not.

Home is definitely geared towards a younger audience. But, for me, I wish the book was longer. I think there could be so much more to this story. Just when Allie made the right decision and I was starting to like her... BAM! The book ended. I hate that!

All in all it was a good, quick read and I enjoyed it.