What is life?

Figurative language is used to emphasize Cassie and her emotions in her experiences and interactions and how she learns from that. Epiphany is used to convey how both Cassie and Stacey learned from their mistakes and simultaneously grew from said mistakes. Many other characters in this book go through an experience they could learn from, but don’t learn from it (e.g. T.J.). But, Stacey and Cassie, thanks to their parents they learn from their mistakes and experiences and get a life lesson along with it. Taylor's book displays a variety of themes but the most prominent theme is that making mistakes is part of life, and is okay, but it is important that you learn from those mistakes and grow from

For her, everyday acts seem much more enjoyable when on drugs. She goes out of their way to experience something new and exciting. She is a creative writer and uses drugs as a way to get back to her child-like imaginative state. Suddenly, with the drugs back in her life, she seems to have much more insight and a wilder imagination. "And the afternoon was absinthe yellow and almond, burnt orange and chrysanthemum. And in the abstract sky, a litany of kites"(93). She longs to feel this way all of the time, but she knows the consequences. She sees doing drugs like going to a carnival. It is an escape from the boring life she is leading now. Even though she has a daughter, she still feels like there is something she is missing out on. The idea of motherhood takes backseat to her lust for drugs.

"Medicine"-April's parents referred to alcohol as "medicine". They told April and Cheryl that they were sick and

And so life goes on for her, until she meets a couple of women that change her life around.

Juli bikes home crying. Bryce continuously tries to talk to her, ringing the doorbell, calling her house, coming to her bedroom window, despite her ignoring him. Finally, one day Juli sees Bryce digging a hole in her front lawn which infuriates her. Her father said he gave him permission and she watches Bryce continue to dig. After he digs the hole, he leaves. Juli is confused but Bryce comes back carrying a baby Sycamore tree and places it in the hole. She goes outside to help him. Knowing that he redeemed himself then continue planting the sycamore tree.

stays focused on reality and her idea of perception as well as the friendships she acquires in her two year stay at McLean Hospital and her recovery period once she is released.

Lastly, Erica is an eleven year old girl who takes drugs to try to mask the pain from living her miserable life. Also, she has sex with a sixteen year old boy, and thinks she is in love and does not use any contraceptives and gets pregnant. After becoming pregnant, the father bails and wants nothing to

The story begins in the mind of Alison Pope, a 14-year-old girl. She is waiting on

and Willie Nelson. The song is an old southern anthem of the basic tale and fate of growing up. The song goes on to

After lots of trying, she realizes it is not going to be a breeze to get him back in her grip with the fact she is in Harvard and looks alone, so she decides to hit the books to outsmart the awful fiancé. In the progress, she meets and great guy who helps her succeed and becomes one of the top students in her class. Elle also meets her a new beautician who she befriends and helps get the man of her dreams with the “bend and snap”. During the process, Elle starts to like herself for who she is, and her true self comes out. She is a bubbly, happy, girly woman who will not take no as an answer. With all her hard work, she even ends up receiving an internship, along with her ex-boyfriend and his fiancé, to work with a client. For one of the few times in her life, Elle was receiving things that she worked for, not that were given to her.

She uses manipulation to get what she desires in her life. She uses her grandchildren to persuade Bailey to go to the house that has a secret panel. She can be blamed for the death of her family because she brings the cat secretly that causes the car wrecked and she does not corrected Bailey that they are not in the right path. Because of her selfishness and manipulative ways, their road trip ends in tragedy. When they are confronted by the Misfit on the side of the road, she only begs for her own life.

Sixteen-year-old Callie and her twelve-year-old brother Jude went through several obstacles since becoming foster kids. They were often separated from each other due to various reasons such as age difference or simply most families looking to foster can only afford one child, they were also placed in a few abusive households which was due to lack of care from those in charge of reviewing foster parent’s’ applications. In one of the homes they were placed in Callie was put in a really difficult situation which had a huge emotional toll on her that the trauma stuck with her for a few seasons. Due to lack of love and affection from anyone in her life Callie fell victim to one of the sons in a foster home she was placed in. Lucas the son manipulated her by giving her what she thought was the love she craved although it involved verbal and physical abuse.

From there, she continues down the dark path of substance abuse as she constantly tries to break away from this downfall. After reading the synopsis, some may deem this as

Although these four pre-teens all come with their own physical and emotional misfortune, they stick together through out this journey in which flashbacks and personalities reveal the lives and

     Alice’s drug addiction drives her along with her family insane. She has to fight a