Shame

Shame by author Holley Jackson, is a thoughtful, intriguing, and masterfully written fictional book which tackles common underlying challenging circumstances that teenagers and young adults regularly face. The main characters are Troy, a high school student, and his older brother Sean, who is also his legal guardian. They travel a path of individual secrets that affect everyone around them, while ultimately unraveling their lives, and dramatically impacting the people closest to them. The invincibility mindset of many teenagers is revealed in this fictional work, while not escaping the consequences that await a continuum of questionable and reckless choices. Societal pressures, heavily guarded secrets, and blatant disregard for any sense of a moral compass entrench the pages of this engaging fictional work. Though entertaining and riveting, Shame is inundated with lessons that give young readers the reality that await their choices, while creating a conversation for healthy alternatives to navigate the traumas that pervade the lives us all.