You’d Be Home Now

Gr 9 Up–Emory Ward has spent her life living in the shadow of her beautiful older sister, her troubled brother, and her super successful parents who expect her to be perfect. After a summer of turmoil, Emory returns to school as an outcast—the sister of an addict who the whole town holds responsible for the death of a young girl, she struggles to make new friends and take care of her brother who seems dangerously close to a relapse all the time. A story on the surface that seems to focus around her brother’s addiction and rehabilitation, it’s really about Emmy’s story of rehabbing who she is and who she wants to be. This portrays the very real struggles that many communities experience. The narrative presents a nuanced look at a family trying to keep their loved ones safe and the toll that addiction takes on all of its members. A heartbreaking yet important story that will resonate with many, it also brings home the effects that addiction can take on an entire community.