Book Report: Almost Home

'Almost Home' by Jessica Blank took me only two days to read, because I couldn't put it down.

"Why would anyone choose to live on the streets? There is Eeyore, just twelve years old when she runs away from her privileged home, harboring a secret she's too ashamed to tell anyone. Rusty is a sensitive gay teen who winds up alone when his older boyfriend ditches him in Hollywood. Squid has gone through too many foster homes to count. There's Scabius, a delusional punk from Utah who takes the "me against the world" motto to dangerous extremes. And Critter is a heroin dealer with movie star looks and a vulnerable heart. Laura should be home studying, but she can't face another one of her mom's boyfriends. And then there's Tracy, the damaged thread that ties them all together, irrevocably changing each person's life she touches. This unlikely band of characters form their own dysfunctional family, complete with love and belonging, abuse and betrayal. Each will make their way home, wherever it may be."

This story opens out of Eeyore's view point, telling about her negligent home life and the older step-brother who molests her at night. School provides no relief--there she is criticized for maturing before the other girls. Cornered and humiliated after school one afternoon, she is picked up by Tracy, who has been hanging around in hopes of earning change. Tracy shows Eeyore what homeless life is like, how liberating it can be, but then disappears one morning leaving Eeyore to fend for herself.

Quickly, Eeyore runs into two older boys and their dog, a pit bull named Germ. She befriends Rusty and Squid and together, a new chapter is formed, this time, switching to Rusty's view point.

I enjoyed the criss-crossing of paths in this story, learning each character's back story and how they came to be in the place they were. Tracy, although the thread that ties them together, is not the main character. She vanishes and resurfaces throughout the story, sometimes to only one of the characters instead of the group.

While the character's stories are distinctly different from each other, the narrative voice remains the same. This disappointed me--I would have changed each teenager's cadence and mannerisms more than what Jessica did, but then again, I'm not as experienced as she is. Long run-on sentences and desolate adjectives compose the entire novel, lending to a sense of pain and longing and honesty. Several times I was surprised at the character's sense of clarity and self-awareness. From Critter's POV:

'It's weird, hearing what I need and knowing that it's just a lie, like wanting to be touched and having someone hit you. It still feels good even though you bleed. It's the best you can do. And sometimes it's enough: sometimes you settle, and you start to look forward to getting hit because at least someone's hand is on your face, at least there's something else touching you besides cold naked air, at least something makes your blood rise, and the tingling in your skin keeps you warm for a while. But then there are times when it turns into an insult, a mean joke that reaches into your ribs where you keep the buried shit, the shit you need, the shit you never say, and pulls it out and holds it up in front of you and everyone like dirty underwear. And everyone laughs but you can't, and you can't cry either, and you also can't stand there but they won't let you run and the hole in your ribs lets the air in and the bubble of it swells and swells until you pop.'

Most of these characters earned my sympathy, except the few who weren't really supposed to, but my favorite was Squid. Taken from a drugged-out mother and an abusive father, he'd been passed from stranger to stranger until he took his dog and left for something better. After years of being alone, Squid has no real hopes or dreams anymore, but instead, a burning desire to protect those who can't protect themselves.

'But Rusty's gone now and he didn't say where he was going. I know he's not used to being out here, and I didn't think he was the type to just leave. I've been wondering what he's gonna eat since this morning. How he'll find his way back here, no bread crumbs. And I keep trying to keep track of everything I did and said, in case I made him go away by accident. I can't stop. I lean over into Germ and listen to him snore, hoping it'll drown out all the other noise. At least Germ's not going anywhere. Nobody's gonna feed him but me.'

Twice, he physically stands up for the others, once for Rusty and once for Eeyore in a heartbreaking display of courage and compassion.

'Rusty slouches back behind my shoulder, chewing on his hand. At first Eeyore does too, and it's like there's two little groups, them on the curb and the three of us standing. I spread out my shoulders so there's room back there for Eeyore and Rusty both.'

Squid could be described as needy, although he never comes across that way to the other characters. But in his head, he talks about needing to keep people close, keeping friends close, so the sound of them downs out everything else and he has something positive to focus on.

'Eeyore's still got snot on her lip, but she doesn't say anything. Germ flops over on his side. No one talks. I lie down next to Germ, my back to them, and listen to him pant. After a second Rusty and Eeyore lie down too, first him, then her. My eyes are closed but I hear them. I keep my eyes shut, slow my breath so they'll think I'm asleep and the whole thing can be over. That noisy itchy feeling starts to creep up inside again, even though I'm not even by myself, not really. The car sounds outside layer on top of each other, building, and I brace myself for another night awake. I must be tired, though: before the noise can take over I pass out.'

There's lots to identify with in this story, and I don't know if that's pathetic on my part--after all, I'm not homeless--or a quality of Jessica's good writing. I'd recommend this book to others, and I'm surprised I found it in the bargain bin--it only printed in October. Very moving story, heartbreaking but fascinating, sure to give you something to think about.
Five out of five stars.