A contemplative novel in verse that questions what it means to lose everything you once treasured and rediscover yourself, falling in love along the way.
Chloe Brooks has only ever known what it's like to have everything. Her parents' wealth and place in society meant she had all she wanted, and friends everywhere she turned. Until it all crashes down: Her father is arrested in the middle of the night, under investigation for fraud.
Bankrupt and facing foreclosure, Chloe must forgo her lavish summer plans as she and her mom are forced to move into one of the rundown apartments they still own, just outside Lexington, Kentucky. Without her riches, Chloe loses her friends, her comfort, her confidence, and her sense of self, unsure of who she is and if she is even worth anything if she nothing to offer.
To Chloe's surprise, she bonds with her neighbors, Clint, Skye, James, and Natalia, and they introduce her to the side of Kentucky she's long ignored. Her new friends are the only ones who see her for who she truly is, but will they stay by her side once they discover her family's true identity, or will Chloe lose them, too?
In her signature captivating verse, Ellen Hagan encapsulates the hesitant joy of reshaping your identity and rediscovering yourself.
All That Shines
Description
Author Description
Ellen Hagan is a writer, performer, and educator. She is the author of Don't Call Me a Hurricane and Reckless, Glorious, Girl and the coauthor with Renee Watson of Watch Us Rise. Her poetry collections include Blooming Fiascoes, Hemisphere, and Crowned. Her work can be found in ESPN Magazine, She Walks in Beauty, and Southern Sin. Ellen is the Director of the Poetry & Theatre Departments at the DreamYard Project and directs their International Poetry Exchange Program with Japan, South Korea and the Philippines. She co-leads the Alice Hoffman Young Writer's Retreat at Adelphi University. Raised in Kentucky, she now lives in New York City with her family.
www.ellenhagan.com
@ellenhagan