BookBrowse Reviews Girls In Trouble by Caroline Leavitt

A wrenching exploration of parent-child relationships

From the book jacket: Sara is sixteen and pregnant. Her once-devoted boyfriend seems to have disappeared, and her only option seems to be an open adoption with George and Eva, an older couple desperate for a child. But after the birth, it's clear Sara has a bond with the child that Eva can't seem to duplicate. And when Sara can't let go, Eva and George make a drastic decision with devastating consequences for all of them.

'A piercing spin on the theme of Romeo and Juliet. Leavitt makes this story refreshingly new. There are no villains here, just believable people trying to make the best of a difficult situation and - children and adults alike - growing up and growing wiser.' -- The Hartford Courant

'In this wrenching exploration of parent-child relationships, Leavitt captures the tensions and rhythms of family attachments--the unspoken language, the simmering resentments and sweet hopes, the blinding, protective love that can both damage and heal.' -- Booklist

Caroline Leavitt is the author of eight novels including, Meeting Rozzy Halfway, Lifelines, Jealousies, Family, Into Thin Air, Living Other Lives, Coming Back To Me, and Girls In Trouble.  She tells me that she's currently working on a novel called Traveling Angels about a young woman who's about to disappear into a new life when she gets involved in a mysterious car crash. In addition she teaches writing online for UCLA and does private manuscript consulting.  She lives in New Jersey with her husband and son, Max.

This review first ran in the April 6, 2005 issue of BookBrowse Recommends.