Close Your Eyes, Hold Hands- reviewed by: Portia Rockers

                                         

Emily Shepard is a 16-year-old girl who lives in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. She's in the middle of her junior year of high school when the power plant has a meltdown. Her parents were both killed during the meltdown, and what's worse is her dad was in charge at the time. Emily is at an evacuation camp with others from her school when she hears that her father is being blamed for the meltdown. Emily, who feels alone and is hurt by the accusations, decides to run away. She's now living on the streets and is comforted by the words of her favorite poet, Emily Dickinson.   

I absolutely loved this book because it was so sad and original. Emily was such a unique character, she was strong and made adult decisions. But, at the same time, I could tell that she was a teenager. A lot of times teenagers are written too mature so that they seem like adults or they are written as so naive that they look like children. I thought Emily had the perfect balance of character traits. The story itself was tragic, and it was something that could happen in the future and has occurred in the past, which is why it was so terrifying. I would recommend this book to everyone I know, it's such a heartbreaking story. Even though the story is not being marketed as YA, I do feel that teens will enjoy this book.