Content levels
Trigger warnings
Positive tags
Hero archetypes
Heroine archetypes
Protagonist archetypes
Synopsis
Chloe is in a home for "troubled" kids. I put in quotation marks because from what I recollect it wasn't a house for those who have drug problems, but those underwent something traumatic and have trouble adjusting, or children who have trouble living amongst "normal" society. A girl is agoraphobic, another (Eric) was burnt in a fire and ostracized by society. Chloe herself lost her mother at a young age after her parents divorced. Her life and routine of taking care of the plants is jarred when her older brother, Skip, comes and gets her out of the home. Since her doctor recommends and encourages it, she follows, but is intensely. The home wants to have a halfway house in the city/town, but there is opposition. A series of thefts occurs, as well as the appearance of a mysterious gardener around Chloe's neighborhood. The kids of the home get accused and this moves into thoughts and actions of trying to prove their innocence.
Is Cancer: Dark Shadows appropriate for my child?
Suitable for most readers 10 and up.
A gentle middle-grade story about troubled kids in a group home facing community prejudice and false accusations. Addresses trauma, loss, and disability with sensitivity but no graphic content.
What to know going in
This book has mild violence, no sexual content, and clean language. Content notes include death of parent, grief, and abandonment (see the full list above).
Who'll love this
Kids will connect with Chloe as she adjusts to life outside her safe home and works with friends to prove their innocence.