Quick Book Review - Keesha's House by Helen Frost

I picked up Keesha's House by Helen Frost from a special "April is Poetry Month" display at the library. I've been a fan of verse novels ever since I read Karen Hesse's Out of the Dust. Alternating narrators reveal stories of troubled teens who find a common safe place. They all have various reasons why they don't feel welcome at home. Stephie is pregnant. Harris just came out to his close-minded family. Katie's stepfather keeps trying to come in her bedroom at night. Staying at "Keesha's house" gives them time to make important decisions and set off on a new path in life, whether that means staying on their own or returning home. Not everyone gets a traditional happy ending, but every story is hopeful. The poems flowed across the page so effortlessly that it wasn't until I read the author's information at the back that I realized they were all written in either sestina or sonnet form. All in all, a book I highly recommend.