THE HOUSE NO ONE SEES

Penelope Ross’ mother struggles with opioid addiction.

On the night of Penny’s 16th birthday, a desperate text from her estranged mother draws her back to the house they once shared. There, Penny, who presents white, is forced to confront buried trauma and painful memories. Through verse and prose that veer into the surreal, debut author King shows Penny revisiting a childhood in which she was left to fend for herself. Penny likens her mother to Sleeping Beauty; referencing a needle mark on her mother’s foot, she thinks, “This must be where the spindle entered. The one that turned you into The Sleeper.” She recalls the growing suspicions of adults who knew something was amiss and frequent visitor Seth—“He had dark hair and blue eyes that came / after me when you weren’t looking”—who died of an overdose in their home. Eventually, Penny’s mother enters rehab and her maternal grandparents take her in, beginning a cycle of painful separations. Life with Nana and Grandpa provides her with structure, physical care, and emotional nurturing as well as therapy. Meanwhile, life with her mother is marked by hunger, neglect, and chaos. The shifting narrative creates an intentional sense of uncertainty. Penny’s childhood memories are conveyed through a childlike voice that’s filled with longing for her mother and the blissful early days before addiction took hold. This heartbreaking work will resonate deeply with fans of A.S. King and Amber McBride.

Raw, gripping, and heart-wrenching.