Review: The Tattered Gloves by J.L. Berg

Title: The Tattered Gloves
By: J.L. Berg
My Copy: Ebook from Publisher
The BookWhisperer's Rating: 

Head down.

Don’t look up.

Never make eye contact.

Those were the words I lived by growing up, the words that protected me in an unsafe home. But words are only letters and eventually even they couldn’t keep his hands off me.

Hoping to leave behind the shattered life of my past, I find myself in a boring, small town, with an aunt I’ve never met and at a school I loathe.

But soon I learn, not everything in this world is as black and white as I’ve determined. Sometimes those we are so quick to judge often need a second, third or even fourth time to make a first impression.

And often, there are friendships and even love waiting just around the corner, if we are brave enough to take the first step.

Am I brave?

Or will I hide behind these tattered gloves of mine forever?

While The Tattered Gloves is categorized as a young adult book, I found that it dealt with a serious issue and was wonderfully written to express the harm that others do and the recovery that the right people can bring.

Willow moves to her aunt’s house after encountering a very unpleasant situation at home.  She finds herself continuing her anti-social ways so that she can protect herself from criticism and the fear that plagues her constantly.  However, there are three characters that see the wall that Willow has built and make a vow to bust it down with whatever they have available.  These three characters, (Addy, Allison, and Sam) showed a new world to Willow, how a teenagers life should be and brought out a new side of Willow that was more social and trusting.

It was wonderful to read how much Willow grows throughout this book.  Coming from the background described throughout the book, she really begins to recognize what her life can be like in Sugar Tree and become a brave young woman.

Some of the book is hard to imagine; it’s hard realizing that these kind of situations happen to people, however Berg did a terrific job writing the growth of Willow, the love that she experiences, and the crumbling of her walls.

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2j066CW

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32851841-the-tattered-gloves

Barnes and Noble: http://bit.ly/2jAJCEw