The Chance You Won’t Return by Annie Cardi (review)

Alex is stealing money from her mom’s purse, failing driver’s ed in a spectacularly public fashion, and finding herself attracted to the school’s bad boy, Jim. Soon, however, Alex realizes that she has bigger problems: her mother believes herself to be Amelia Earhart. As Alex’s mother’s delusion becomes more persistent, she is hospitalized, but Alex’s father’s insurance isn’t enough, and the family has to take care of her at home. Now, in addition to her problems at school and her growing relationship with Jim, Alex is plagued with the responsibility of keeping her household together while keeping her mother’s problem a secret. When she realizes that her mother is working on a timeline that will eventually lead to her disappearance, she needs Jim’s help, and her confession closes the distance she has been maintaining between herself and her friends. Alex’s mom’s delusion works as both metaphor and real problem in this double-edged story of a girl coming of age. Character development through the rendering of small detail is strong here, particularly with respect to Alex’s younger siblings, Katy and Teddy, who emerge in realistic response to their mother’s withdrawal from their lives. The result is a solidly crafted family story that sensitively explores the ripple effects of the temporary brokenness of one member.