by Emily Murdoch
An emotional and hard-hitting story of kidnap and abuse.Carey was taken away from her father by her mother. She was 6 yrs old at the time. Her mother told her that her father was abusive and that she was taking her away to protect them both. They go to live in a camper van in the forest. Carey is now 14 and has a new sister, 6-yr-old Jenessa. Their mother leaves them on their own for weeks at a time, saying she's going to town to get supplies. The girls learn how to fend for themselves, Carey teaches her sister how to read and write - Jenessa's favourite books are Winnie the Pooh, and they name the forest they live in Hundred Acre Wood.
One day, after their mother has disappeared for weeks and not returned, they have a visitor. Their father. He is accompanied by a social worker. They have received a letter from the mother saying she can't look after them anymore and giving custody to the father. So Carey and Jenessa leave the place they have known as home to live with a man who is practically a stranger, and who Carey believes may hurt them.
But during the stay with her father, his new wife and stepdaughter, Carey comes to realise that perhaps all she was told by her mother may not have been the truth, and all that they have suffered in the woods was not what 2 sisters should have been put through by their own mother.
Moving, tragic, tearful, horrific and yet joyful in parts, it is unbelievable how 2 young girls could have gone through so much. One event traumatised the young Jenessa so much that she became mute. Parts of the story are so upsetting it would be hard to recommend this to anyone under the age of 15. Thankfully, in stories like these, there is always one character that brings hope, and in this one it is Ryan who brings a sparkle into Carey's life.
As I've said in recent reviews, I am all dystopia'd out, so I love reading something a bit different. This was different.
If you like hard-hitting stories, try Black Heart Blue by Louisa Reid.
