Mercy Suarez meets The Thing About Jellyfish in this novel about what happens when perfect is out of your control. A classic middle grade story told with honesty, nuance, and depth, in the tradition of Rebecca Stead, Holly Goldberg Sloan, and Jerry Spinelli.

How do you share a parent with a stranger?

Maggie’s accustomed to leading her life perfectly according to her own well-designed plans. But when Maggie learns that she has a half-brother her own age who needs a place to stay, any semblance of a plan is shattered. Tony’s mom struggles with an addiction to opioids, and now she’s called upon Maggie’s dad - who’s also Tony’s dad - to take him in.

As Maggie struggles to reconcile her mom and dad’s almost-divorce, accept the Alzheimer’s afflicting her grandmother, and understand Tony’s own issues - ignorance is no longer an option. While Maggie can strive for - and even succeed in - a perfect design, when it comes to family, nothing is perfect, and tackling its complexities is only possible with an open heart.

Heart-wrenching, authentic, and darkly funny, this is a spectacularly written portrayal of the ways we respond to intense change, and proof that no matter the circumstances, the unexpected things are often the best ones.