Book Review: House Arrest

I got to meet some of the Sales Reps from Chronicle and I couldn't quit grinning from ear to ear. What a dork! It was cool to meet the people who provided me the first galley I ever reviewed. (A galley is a book that has not be released, is still in the editing process and is not for everyone to have!)

On Oct. 6th this book was released. I am a bit late on my delivery, but Books & Whatnot had it out in time for its debut. As with all my reviews you can find them at Books & Whatnot because she is my boss and gets full rights to the entire script, where here is just me ranting and raving for those in Kansas to know what we are doing!


When you see this book on the shelves in the middle-grade section, with its aptly named title, you know you will be reading about a kid who is a juvenile delinquent stuck in his house; what this title omits is the raw emotion you will have hurled at you by page five. I suspected boredom and a rite of passage to be found in this blue-covered book. What I didn’t intend to find was a day obliterated by reading because I couldn’t stop crying, couldn’t stop being angry, couldn’t stop laughing, … well, I just couldn’t stop reading a journal written by Timothy, who is under house arrest for stealing a wallet in hopes there would be enough money in it to buy medicine for his extremely sick baby brother.

House Arrest, by K. A. Holt, is more than just a story of a kid gone wrong; it is a story told in verse of pride, humility and sacrifice done in honor of family. When Timothy’s baby brother is brought into the world, he cannot breathe. He had to have a tracheotomy, causing him to need constant care and endless amounts of medical supplies. All of this is too much for Timothy’s father, so he deserts his family, leaving the mom to support both boys financially, mentally and physically. As a mom, my heart was breaking. How do you balance a sick kid with one full of vitality and try to work to maintain the mortgage, the utilities and manage to sleep? As a mom, as a teacher, as an empathetic person, my head was reeling as I turned the pages of this emotional journal.

Through Timothy and his experiences I found his 52 weeks astounding–I discovered how pride can be strong even in one so young. Timothy doesn’t want to admit to his probation officer, his counselor or his friends his true struggle of living with shoes too small, a belly that is never full, a brother who is constantly turning blue, a nurse who is evil to the sick baby brother. Oh, my heart just aches trying to summarize Timothy’s amazing tale. I want to go into my classroom and ask, ‘Does anyone need shoes?’ But I know, thanks to this 13-year-old’s tale, that no one is going to raise their hand. No one is going to admit defeat. No one is going to show a teacher, a probation officer or even their friends how deep the sorrow goes and how much the need is present. Timothy is a hero and I’m sure there are many more unbeknownst to all of us.