Book review - A Scar Like a River

 Title: A Scar Like a River

Author: Lisa Graff

Genre: realistic fiction

Age range: middle grade

Similar book: Shark Teeth by Sherri Winston

Summary (provided by publisher): Fallon Little has a secret—and it’s not how she got the enormous scar that divides her face in two.

Thirteen-year-old Fallon has only ever told one person what really happened on the day she got her scar. Why would she? The truth is dark, and Fallon has much brighter things to focus on, like being cast as the lead in the school play, and hanging out with her two best friends, Trent and Kaia. But when Fallon's uncle Geebie dies, his funeral ignites a wildfire of events that Fallon can't manage to tamp down. The school play is spiraling out of control, Fallon's impossible Aunt Lune comes to live with them, and Trent and Kaia might just be so into each other that there isn't room for Fallon in their friend group any more. And when secrets even worse than the one about Fallon's scar threaten to come to light, Fallon might not have the strength to keep them buried for much longer.

What I liked: This could easily have been a book just about dealing with trauma. Certainly what happened to Fallon informs every decision she makes. But it's not the entirety of the plot. The focus of the book is as much on standing up for yourself, making your voice heard, as it is about trauma. It's also about discovering the consequences of protest. It handles each reveal sensitively and realistically.

What I didn't like: This isn't so much a thing that I didn't like as something to bear in mind when recommending this book. It talks frankly and plainly about abuse. While this is never graphic and doesn't dwell on details, it also doesn't hide what happened to a character behind metaphor or leave us to fill in blanks. It depicts the abuse and the emotional fallout plainly. So be prepared to discuss and help young readers process the events of this novel.

Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley