Facing Demons

Gr 9 Up—Four troubled teens, united in a rehab program situated on a beach outside Sydney, Australia, are wary of one another at first but find ways to connect through first-person video stories and adventures in the bush. Three of their stories are familiar to the problem-novel genre: foster child Rebecca, abused by her former caregivers, is addicted to drugs and forced to work in a brothel; Jason, a skinhead gang leader, is seeking to avenge the killing of his family by a rival black gang; and Felicity's younger brother's death leads her to drug abuse, cutting, and attempted suicide. And then there's Matthew, a homeless refugee from Darfur who steals to stay alive and is badly burned after an attempted burglary—which begs the question, why is he in rehab? The story is mostly told in alternating chapters by the teens. The characters seem too much in touch with their true feelings and motivations, which, given the setting, doesn't ring true. A twist at the end feels forced to move the plot along. Readers will find a more thought-provoking rehab story in Ellen Hopkins's Impulse (S & S, 2007).—Shawna Sherman, Hayward Public Library, CA