Expecting

Three girls could not be more different. Kaelynn lived with her grandmother, an old lady with a mean streak. Yessenia left an abusive stepfather to live with her boyfriend’s mother. Lyric was from a good family. Pretty and popular in school. How did she end up pregnant and at Pathways? They met at the county program. It was more comfortable than attending the town’s one high school, isolated and with growing bellies. They could still take regular classes. And hopefully graduate on time. Each girl soon relies on their growing friendship, which will see them through the drama.

From the Great Plains to the borderlands to the Mississippi Delta, rural America is struggling. The population is shrinking. And the economy is shifting away from agriculture. Without a safety net, rural families struggle with depression, drug abuse, alcoholism, and other problems. Gravel Road Rural addresses the contemporary issues affecting rural America in an unflinching way.

Hard-hitting, contemporary young adult fiction is not trendy—it’s not dystopia. There are no vampires, no werewolves, no castles. It’s real life. It’s unflinching. Gravel Road highlights the talent of YA authors committed to creating realistic fiction with emotional authenticity. No topic is off-limits: suicide, homosexuality drugs, rape, gangs, bullying. Teens live with this reality each day. And they find a way to survive.