All Alone

by Russ Thompson

Tenth-grader Elgin Hobbs seems fine on the outside. But he's failing classes, his divorced parents fight, and his mom is an alcoholic. He tries to rise above it. But life keeps knocking him down. Lexile measure HL540L. At Finding Forward Books, we publish easy-to-read novels with positive life lessons for teens. They have realistic stories about young people overcoming challenges. Our mission is to help teens achieve success and find their way forward through life. The books are for all students, including English learners and those with learning disabilities. They are printed in Open Dyslexic, a font to accommodate individuals with dyslexia. They have been praised in Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly BookLife Reviews, Foreword Clarion Reviews, and BlueInk Reviews.

122 pages, Paperback

Published May 28, 2021

Reviews

[Dr. Julie Wasmund Hoffman]

The world needs more hi-lo books for teens. I was really into this one, at first, because main character Elgin was struggling with some things I could relate to . . . underperforming in school, mom's alcoholism, split up parents, etc.

The reason I rated this book so low is because of the ending. SPOILER ALERT . . .

Everything "got better" at the end when Elgin dumped out all of his mom's alcohol. This is not how an alcoholic gets sober or chooses recovery. I think it is reckless to lead readers to this as a solution. Children are not in charge of their parents substance abuse issues and cannot control it. It is not their fault. A better ending would have been for Elgin to find Alateen or a support group to help himself.

[Secret]

Very quick read, hits home a little bit, and just overall a good book. I don’t agree with another reviewer’s take on the ending: the ending wasn’t that things are better, but that they continue to go up and down. The author decided to end on an up day, but still with the reality that it won’t last/that the mom won’t get better, which is a reality for many children.

[Rachel Bays]

I bought these books for my dyslexic students. They enjoyed this book and so did I. Thank you, Russ Thompson. This is the first book some of my students have ever read in their own.