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In a deeply-felt narrative, Addie (17) describes the impact of her parents' divorce on her own life and her family. Seven at the time of the blow-up, Addie is a caring, active, curious child who loves her fun-loving, impractical father and finds it hard to please her perfectionist mother. After her father leaves, the unforgiving mother sees his personality in Addie, finding her every action suspect. Confused, Addie dreams that her father will return; meanwhile, her grades go down, her older sister sides with her mother, and the younger twins—who love Addie but are too little to defend her against their mother's anger—become deeply disturbed and speak mostly to each other, their split vision of the world reflecting the damage done by the divorce and the withdrawal of the more nurturing parent. Honeycutt makes the motivation within the family clear, but while Addie herself is well rounded most of the others border on stereotypes. The reader understands that Addie's spirit will find sustenance when she finally leaves home; still, the sad, almost relentless list of ways she's distanced and misunderstood as she grows up makes for a somber, introspective tale. (Fiction. 13+)