Description
Like a river,
I must keep flowing,
finding a way through
if I want to survive.
I will adapt
no matter the pain this causes me.
I will paint on a mask
and hide my struggles.
But can I be strong
like a river?
Rebecca Tapia has started at a prestigious new school and is overwhelmed by the rules and expectations. With her mum away and her dad facing challenges of his own, Rebecca's only way of surviving is to mask her autism.
A compelling and moving verse novel by award-winning author Kate Foster, who combines her heartfelt writing with an authentic view of autism and the daily pressure of masking.
And the joy of freeing yourself from that.
Review
Rebecca soared through primary school and gained a full scholarship to a prestigious private grammar school, both for her sporting and academic achievements.
But high school is different with unbending rules, and the expectation to not stand out by being different in any way. This is difficult with her autism, but Rebecca tries her best to mask it. To get along. To flow like a strong river. Rivers are her favourite subject - she knows them all.
Rebecca has her best friend Clover, who she does gymnastics with once a week. And although Rebecca is brilliant at it, she is not made for the stage and so she won’t enter any competitions.
At school her main teacher, the ironically named Mrs Rivers, makes her life hell. She doesn’t accept Rebecca’s autism, and feels that Rebecca is just trying to get attention and should try harder to fit in.
Her home life is also a struggle after her brilliant botanist mother took a six-month trip to Peru to discover new species. Rebecca and her dad, who also has autism, really lack the glue and direction that she provides to their lives. They all thought that she should go, but now things are falling apart with her gone.
But Rebecca finds strength from unlikely sources, including the seemingly perfect school captain, Florence Hart. Can they manage to start the change in motion for everyone to be accepted openly, with all their differences?
This is an uplifting book about the liberating power of accepting people for who they are, with all their differences. With themes of living with autism, the pressure of masking, bullying, the importance of families and friends, and the joy found in becoming free to be yourself, this is a fantastic book for readers aged from 11 to 15 years.
