MY LIFE OFF-KEY

A teen faces challenges after learning her dad is not her biological father.

After Jen’s performance at her high school talent show, she’s discomfited when an older man in the audience gives her roses—and completely thrown when he tells her that his name is Mike, and he’s her father. Jen already has a dad, Steve, but her mom confirms that she had an affair with Mike, that he’s Jen’s biological father, and that Steve doesn’t know. The entire family, including Ella, Jen’s 9-year-old sister, must deal with the fallout, especially when Steve moves out. Jen struggles with questions about her identity, whether she’s at fault for the problems in her parents’ marriage, and if she still has a place in her family. But as she gets to know Mike and his son, her half brother, Jack, and learns about things they have in common, both large (she and Mike are talented musicians) and small (she, Mike, and Jack have the same favorite ice cream flavor), she realizes that she’s the same person, and her family is expanding, not shrinking. This accessible novel for reluctant readers puts its protagonist into a high-drama situation; the portrayals of Jen and the other characters do an excellent job of modeling reflecting on one’s emotions, asking direct questions, and sharing their feelings with others. Jen and her family read white.

Both a coming-of-age story and a road map for processing difficult emotions.