Sketches

by Eric Walters

Overview

After fleeing her suburban home, 15-year-old Dana struggles to survive in the alleys, squats, and subway stations of downtown Toronto. Dana and her two friends, seasoned street kids Brent and Ashley, must contend with turf wars, thugs, hunger, and the daily battle of life on the streets.When Dana’s graffiti on an underpass catches the eye of a counsellor at Sketches, a drop-in centre for homeless teens, Dana discovers a haven where she can express herself through art. As she works on a self-portrait, Dana begins to confront the reason she left home. The truth of what her stepfather did to her is trying to surface, but will it come out through her paintbrush or the blade of a knife?

This gritty, honest portrayal of street life from acclaimed author Eric Walters is a testament to the healing power of art.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781440635083
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	03/13/2008
Sold by:	Penguin Group
Format:	eBook
Pages:	232
File size:	275 KB
Age Range:	12 Years

About the Author

Eric Walters’s young adult novels have won numerous awards, including the Silver Birch, Blue Heron, Red Maple, Snow Willow, and Ruth Schwartz Awards, and have received honors from UNESCO’s international award for Literature in the Service of Tolerance. He lives in Mississauga, Ontario.

Editorial Reviews

Gr 7 Up- Dana, 14, escapes her stepfather's sexual abuse by running away to the streets of Toronto, where she forms a "family" with street kids Ashley and Brent. Panhandling money for food, finding places to sleep, and staying safe are a struggle, but the three manage to survive. Little by little, Dana learns why her friends are in this situation, and she in turn reveals her story. The teens' saving grace is Sketches, a drop-in center where homeless youth engage in art and are cared for. When an attempt to make a home in Tent Town falls apart, Dana, Ashley, and Brent, with the help of Sketches's staff, develop a plan to get off the streets permanently. Though Walters's characters are developed enough for readers to care about them, they're not fully fleshed out. While hinted at (but never actually described), Dana's abuse is not disclosed until the end of the book, raising unanswered questions of why she left her younger sister in jeopardy and whether she had told her mother what was happening. Todd Strasser's Can't Get There from Here (S & S, 2004) is a more compelling, intense, and bleak depiction of street kids, but readers who liked it will be drawn to this story, too, especially its believable yet non-gritty dialogue. The characters' well-portrayed camaraderie, resourcefulness, and resiliency carry the tale, which ends on a note of promise.-Diane P. Tuccillo, Fort Collins Regional Library District, CO

School Library Journal

Art and the street provide refuge to a hurting teen. Escaping from her sexually abusive stepfather, Dana joins up with Brent and Ashley, two longtime residents of the Toronto streets. Making money by spare-changing commuters and wiping windshields leaves Dana yearning for artistic expression, which she finds when a drop-in center councilor notices her graffiti. Her talent quickly garners the threesome extra cash, and Dana is able to confront her inner turmoil through canvas. Dealing with dark issues such as homelessness and sexual abuse, Walters keeps Dana's narrative voice light, a choice that reduces the authenticity of the tale. Dana remains oddly above whatever circumstances she faces, whether it's the revelation of her self-mutilation, the tale of her sexual abuse, or the intervention by the drop-in center's counselor. Brent and Ashley's world-weary attitude nicely balances out the discrepancy. Lacking the strong characters and emotions of Jessica Blank's Almost Home, Walters's tale remains a rough sketch. (Fiction. YA)

Kirkus Reviews