Breaking into Sunlight

A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection ★ An Indie Next pick

This powerful and compassionate book follows a family’s journey through the turbulence of parental addiction—and the moments of connection and healing that break through the dark days.

Reese is a seventh-grader in rural North Carolina who loves drawing, basketball, his hardworking mom, and his charming, charismatic dad. But then one day, he comes home to his worst nightmare – his dad on the floor, lips turning blue, overdosed. Again. Reese calls 911 and gets his dad out of danger, and he expects to go on as before. But for his mom, this is the breaking point, and she declares that she and Reese are leaving until Reese’s dad gets real help with his addiction. They move to a rundown trailer outside of town, where Reese is furious with his mom, scared for his dad, and terrified his friends will find out.  
Then he meets Meg and Charlie, who have likewise been stranded by circumstances beyond their control. As the trio explores the blackwater river that runs nearby, Reese discovers new beauty and joy in nature and these fresh connections. His dad is also doing better, holding things together, and talking to his mom again. But how long can the good times last? And what will Reese do if—when—they end?

In the United States today, an estimated one in four kids live with a parent or relative with a substance-abuse problem. Written with bracing honesty, deep sympathy, and tenderness for all its characters, Breaking into Sunlight offers readers a powerful affirmation that no one is alone.

★ "An important novel for every library to have." —School Library Journal, starred review