by Laura Moriarty - undifferentiated
First published 2010
Veronica Von watches her family fall apart during her sophomore year of college. Her mother has kicked her father out of their Kansas home after discovering his gambling addiction has destroyed their finances. Veronica finds herself caught between her parents as they navigate their messy separation. Her father moves into a shabby apartment while her mother tries to maintain appearances despite their mounting debts. Veronica's younger sister Elise acts out at home while Veronica struggles to focus on her studies. She takes a job at a coffee shop to help with expenses and begins questioning everything she thought she knew about her parents' marriage. As the divorce proceedings drag on, Veronica must decide whether to side with one parent over the other or forge her own path forward. The family's financial crisis forces difficult choices about college tuition and living arrangements. Through it all, Veronica grapples with the painful realization that the stable family life she always took for granted was built on secrets and lies.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, contemporary, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: coming-of-age, family-drama, parent-child-conflict
Setting: Kansas
Period: Sophomore Year
305 pages · Paperback · Penguin Books
Content warnings: addiction