THE SECRET OF BELONGING by Megan E. Freeman

 

She feels invisible. Her parents don't see her because their attention is directed toward her drug addicted brother. They worry he'll OD or end up in jail. They admit they used her college fund to send him to rehab yet again. Of course, rehab doesn't work.

Her best friend encourages her to continue filling out college applications, but she knows working at the video store is her only future. As a last resort she applies for a foreign exchange program. Now she is traveling to Norway.

She can leave all the drama behind for a year. She learns a new language, sees beautiful sights, meets interesting people, and finds skills she didn't know she possessed. Meeting Espen makes her feel seen and even understood.

Author Megan E. Freeman uses flowing verse to take readers into a life that at first feels pretty hopeless but evolves and grows into a thing filled with hope and love. THE SECRET TO BELONGING is Freeman's first YA novel. I can't wait to read more.