One for the Murphys

The last time 12-year-old Carley Connors cried was 384 days ago, when her mother married her abusive stepfather. Narrator Nora Hunter captures Carley's conflicted emotions--her snarky side and her unvoiced but obvious fears. Now facing foster care, she remembers how her mother warned, "Never show your fear." But despite her social worker's assurances about her placement with the Murphys, she's shaking. Still, she hasn't totally lost her attitude: "I love it when people use the word 'please' but look like they want to remove your face." Hunter's portrayal of the warm, caring Julie Murphy contradicts Carley's perceptions, and Carley's mother's hardness. As the story and characters evolve, so do their painful dissonances and their eventual heartbreaking understandings. S.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine