Synopsis
Carly Chambers spends her summer days delivering mysterious packages for her harsh father but when she sneaks out at night to find some freedom, she faces danger from all ...
Michele Winship - Alan Review
Thirteen-year-old Carly Chambers keeps secrets. Her peers can't breech her armor of silence. No one in the resort community of Oceanside knows that her father causes the bruises she wears. And her parents have no idea that she sneaks out of her window each night to lead a second life on the balmy summer boardwalk. Carly also uncovers other people's secrets. Eddie the newsstand man has a son who doesn't know he exists. Aileen, the strange girl in the long flowing skirts, could really be a special friend. And, Nick, the popular athlete, honestly likes her. When a tall stranger follows her, and she discovers that the "candy" deliveries her father forces her to make aren't candy, and the house of cards crumbles. Carly finally musters enough strength to admit the truth, stand up to her father, and accept help from others. Recommended for ages 12 and up, The Secret Within sensitively depicts internal conflict that silences abuse victims, and shows readers the situation is escapable once the truth is revealed. 2002, Boyds Mills Press, 240 pp.,