Last One Home by Mary Pope Osborne Bailey's mother is an alcoholic who left her family years ago, Bailey's big brother is about to join the army, and Bailey's father is about to get married. Bailey is having a hard time dealing with all of the above. She wishes her mother would quit drinking and come back home, her father would break up with Janet, and her brother would get back with his girlfriend and forget about the army. Bailey's inability to deal with the things she doesn't like threaten her relationships with everyone. She obstinately goes about getting her brother home, being mean to Janet, and not going easy on the world. Bailey only acts her age when she talks about imitating her brother's former girlfriend and even there it seems off; this story fits a confused kid. Bailey's attempts to understand the world she has to live in won't work; she's not as smart as she thinks she is.
Happy reading.
