"These two things I know for sure: (1) nothing about life is fair, and (2) it is not going to get better."
Not a great outlook for a fifteen-year-old girl, is it? But Maya Stark, the biracial heroine of Melody Carlson's latest book, A Not-So-Simple-Life is completely justified in her pessimistic opinion. On the outside, Maya's life is enviable. She lives in a Hollywood mansion, her mother is a beautiful former starlet, and her father is a rock star. Really, a rock star! But behind the facade Maya's life is an ongoing nightmare. Her dad is on the road, and therefore nonexistent. Her drug addict mother is unpredictable and unreliable. Maya is on her own in a scary, sometimes abusive world that is totally alien to most of us, and yet hauntingly familiar at the same time.
That sounds really dark, doesn't it? But the book isn't dark. It's gritty, but Maya's personality rescues the stark surroundings, and her determination to succeed won me over from the very beginning. I loved her "Green Tips," such simple wisdom as not letting the water run while you brush your teeth. And I loved Maya. She's a unique, unforgettable personality.
I was honored to have the opportunity to endorse this book. I'll let my endorsement speak for itself:
"As Maya Stark pours her heart out in her journal, readers are treated to an inside view of a life that is at times exotic and unfamiliar, and at other times hauntingly similar to our own. Maya’s struggles become our struggles, her pain our pain, which makes her successes even sweeter. A Not-So-Simple Life is another triumph for Melody Carlson."
This book was released July 15th, so you'll probably be able to find it at your local bookstore. They can definitely order it for you. If you prefer to shop online, click here.
