mynameisnoteasy

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My Name is Not Easy

Debby Edwardson

Edwardson, Debby. My Name is Not Easy. Marshall Cavendish. 2011.

My Name is Not Easy is written by the great author Debby Edwardson. It's a fiction book about a teenage boy named Alfred, who has lived in a foster home since he was four. Nobody had told him why he lives in a foster home, or what happened to his parents, but he is destined to find out. Debby has not yet received an award for this book but she was a finalist for a National Book Award.

Alfred was born in a small town called Springfield, Kentucky. Alfred was a normal child, and he was raised by normal parents. When Alfred was three and a half years old, he had already learned how to feed himself, how to read the alphabet, and even put himself to sleep. On one hot, dry, August morning, Alfred couldn't find his parents. He called out their name for what seemed like a whole half hour. Finally, Alfred just gave up and served himself yogurt. That night, he laid on his bed staring at the ceiling. He turned to his left to try to fall asleep, then he noticed a piece of paper with something written on it. Alfred sat up and tried to read the words on the letter but he only could read the letters, he finally gave up and went back to sleep.

Alfred lived alone in his parent's house for four months until, one day, there was a fire. The local fire station had broken into the house only to find a child sitting alone in the living room. Luckily Alfred wasn’t hurt nor was the letter that he carries wherever he went. From that day on Alfred was put into foster care. Every night before he went to bed he read the letter. It said: “Dear Alfred, we know that you can’t read this but we are hoping that you will hold on to it and read it when you are able to. We just wanted to tell you that we love you and you will always be in our hearts. Your father and I know that you would never forgive us for what we did, by leaving you in a house alone, but all of this is to protect you. I know it must be hard for you to understand but it is something that we can’t speak of. Please don’t try to find us, it is for the best. Always know that we love you, and we know one day that we will reunite.”

Alfred isn’t sure about how he feels about his parents. There are so many questions that need to be answered. Alfred runs away from his foster home in search of his parents. Join Alfred on his life changing journey.

My Name is Not Easy, is an extraordinary tale of love, betrayal, and survival. The book has fantastic dialog and there is no way that a reader could stop reading it. Debby did a very good job writing this book and it is recommend for anyone ages twelve and up.

5 out of 5 stars

Contributed by M. Gebremariam

February 8, 2013