Every Day After

Set in 1932 in small-town Alabama, Golden’s folksy debut details the struggles and injustices facing 11-year-old Lizzie Hawkins after her father loses his job and leaves town. Stuck with an overdue mortgage and a mother paralyzed by depression, Lizzie believes she just has to hold it together until her father returns, as she is sure he will. Her best friend Ben is supportive but in a similar situation, and he grows tired of Lizzie’s single-minded focus on her own problems. Between the pressures of working, keeping up her grades, staying one step ahead of her nemesis at school, and hiding the truth about her home life (Lizzie fears her mother will be sent to an institution and she herself to an orphanage), Lizzie is too busy to see that she may need to reach out for help. The novel’s Southern dialect and Depression-era setting are solidly evoked—debut author Golden pulled from her own family’s history to create Lizzie’s story. If the characters sometimes come across as one-note, Lizzie’s innate resilience and determination are memorable and inspiring. Ages 9–12. (June)