Karen, his younger sister drops out of school and refuses to leave the flat because of the assault, his mother has resorted to numbing the pain and escaping reality through alcohol and he's left with dealing with the responsibility of looking after his entire family. From the poorer side of town, Mikey is left with the burdensome task of taking care of his family. The story starts at the point where a crime has already been committed and charges have been pressed. Jenny Downham has an effortless knack for conveying this throughout. Rather, what makes this novel so incredibly moving, powerful and really worth reading is how choices are made and how the backdrop of their love story forms and shapes the decisions that Mikey and Ellie make based on their situation. Well, yes it is, but my recommendation and review of this book is not going to be based on telling you that you should read the book because it's a forbidden love story about 2 people from 2 opposite sides of the spectrum who are not only divided by their different social spectrum, but also by an accused crime tearing both of their families apart. The synopsis of this book sounds as if it's just another run-of-the-mill, been-there-done-that before concept doesn't it? And yet, Jenny Downham's You Against Me is anything but that. Their journey and their story is a story that will not only test their loyalty, but it's a story that will affect the very choices that they need to make… choices that could bring restoration for one family, and tear another family further apart.Īnd in between, they'll need to discover whether a love so seemingly impossible is a love still worth pursuing. When Ellie and Mikey meet, 2 polar opposite worlds collide and set them on a path that will affect not only them, but those around them too. When Ellie's brother is accused and charged with the crime, the perfect family life she's always known slowly starts falling apart. When Mikey's sister claims to have been sexually assaulted, the world as he knows it, comes crashing down.

You Against Me by Jenny Downham (David Fickling Books)

The Sky Above Us by Sarah Sundin