Sliding on the Edge [Hardcover]

C. Lee McKenzie (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 23, 2009

Shawna Stone, sixteen, can handle anything from a Las Vegas hustle to skipping out on the rent. Scarred inside and out, she's survived with a tough, hardened attitude. Yet she's thrown when her mother abandons her in Vegas with only a bus ticket and the name and number of a stranger to call. Now this troubled, desperate teen finds herself on a Northern California horse ranch with Kay Stone, her steely, youngish, disillusioned grandmother,who overwhelms Shawna with rules and daily barn chores. Shawna will baffle Kay with her foul mouthed anger and shrugging indifference to everything--except the maltreated horse on the ranch next door. But it's worse than even Kay suspects: Shawna's driven to cut herself by that strange voice inside her head,which at times has been her only steady companion.Kay, brittle from the loss of her marriage and her only son, struggles to keep the ranch going with only Kenny, the broken down drifter she hired, to lean on. Wondering what secrets hide behind Shawna's barricade, Kay fears that unless she somehow helps this troubled girl, she could lose her last living family member. And Kay's own secret is the very one that's kept Shawna and her mother away for all these years. As this unlikely pair struggles to co-exist, will they overcome their inner suffering to build a bridge to each other, and together find the strength to transcend the past?

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 9 Up–Shawna is abandoned in Las Vegas by her mother, a gambling addict and shoplifter who no longer wants the responsibility of a child. She is left with only $100, a bus ticket to Sweet River, CA, and the name and phone number of a grandmother she's never met. She leaves, taking only her backpack and two small packages she has hidden behind the refrigerator. Kay, her grandmother, agrees to take her in. Both have strong defenses against hurt, and neither wants to let down those walls. Shawna is tough, used to depending on herself and living her way, but she must abide by Kay's rules: dinner at 7:00, chores on the horse ranch, and only Sunday off. Soon after the teen arrives in California, readers find out what was in the packages: a razor blade and a set of library cards from every place Shawna and her mother have lived. The girl cuts herself while hearing the voice of Monster, and as time goes on, she also communicates with a horse she grows to care for on a nearby farm. Sliding reads like a problem-of-the-week novel. The protagonist only comes around after discovering the redemptive power of a horse and a grandmother's love (though Kay's abrupt change from irritation with her new charge to caring for her seems forced and perplexing). Too much is left unexplained: the reason Shawna keeps the library cards, why she self-mutilates, the identity of a woman with a long red braid who seems to be her only good memory. The characters are flat stereotypes, and Shawna's turnaround is too sudden.–Suanne Roush, Osceola High School, Seminole, FL
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Review

"Sliding on the Edge is the compelling, courageous chronicle of one girl--destined to be a no one--who fights back against her secret grief and pain and finds her life." --Judy Gregerson, author of Bad Girls Club

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 268 pages
• Publisher: WestSide Books; 1st edition (April 23, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1934813060
• ISBN-13: 978-1934813065
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 6.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,588,695 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An Awesome Read! May 17, 2009

By LeighBrescia

Format:Hardcover

I loved this compelling debut novel by C. Lee McKenzie. Shawna's story pulls at the reader's heartstrings, and the message is one that will resonate long after the book is finished. I highly recommended it! (Just don't forget the tissues!) :)

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A great read for teens and adults! July 12, 2009

By Nan Marino

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

When her mother abandons her, sixteen year old Shawna Stone is forced to give her up life in Las Vegas and move onto a horse farm with her grandmother, Kay. These two have major secrets. Shawna battles her inner demon, a "Monster", who urges her to cut herself and whispers of suicide. Kay secrets deal with her marriage and her son. Watching their lives unravel makes for an exciting read but the real joy comes as they begin to rebuild. This is a wonderful story of healing and redemption.
Don't think for a moment that you will be able to put this book down until it is done. You will be too drawn into the main character's troubled world.
In her debut novel, C. Lee McKenzie tackles some serious issues (abandonment, attempted suicide, depression) and creates a compelling story for both teens and adults. I highly recommend this book and look forward to more books by this author.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Sliding on the Edge June 14, 2009

By Freddie

Format:Hardcover

One of the greatest compliments I can give a book is to say I sat down for a half hour to read and suddenly realized four hours flew by. So it was with C.Lee McKenzie's book "Sliding on the Edge." This is a story about survival in a not-so-friendly world. Shawna Stone is a teenaged girl who is physically and emotionally abandoned by her mother; then sets off to live with a grandmother she has never met. The reader experiences Shawna's difficulties as she fights the past, barely grabs onto the present, and struggles to allow herself a future. To quote from the book: "I'm going over to a whole other side of the world." Great story for adults as well as teens.
Freddie Remza
author of "The Journey to Mei"