This is the 4th book in my sponsored read in memory of my brother. For all of the details about this fundraising event, you can click here. Cameron Post has just lost her parents in a tragic accident. Just prior to this, she was kissing a girl for the first time. Her first feeling is one of relief, knowing her parents will never discover her secret. Then she's moved to Miles City, Montana to live with her aunt Ruth and her grandmother. Ruth is conservative, religious and misguided in her intentions for Cameron. Cameron learns to survive the boredom of a small town and the depression, anxiety and ruin that her loss has left her. When Coley moves to town, something in Cameron ignites, she's never met someone like Coley, a beautiful girl who seems perfect in every way. Her and Coley become friends and just as their bond becomes close, Ruth decides to send Cameron to an ultra-religious camp in order to "fix" her homosexuality. In the camp, Cameron meets some teens who are genuinely on board for their "fixing" and others who see the camp for what it is, a denial of the basic human rights of the people who are forced to go there. Together, Cameron and her friends hatch a plan, one that will bring them closer together or potentially tear them apart. This is a beautiful novel that touches upon loss, grief, depression, substance abuse, the dangers of forcing religious beliefs onto others and so much more. Cameron wants to be herself, but she's not really sure who that is. I strongly identified with her struggles in her small town. The boredom, the toxic masculinity, the gossip, all of it were things that were to be overcome otherwise they would swallow you up. Cameron doesn't let it swallow her up, she takes things head on and pays a price for it but in my opinion it's a price worth paying. Cameron is someone I wish existed in my town, I think she would have been a great friend. This novel has received tons of accolades already so I'm not writing anything new here, but check it out if you haven't already. I'd happily give it to a Year 10 or 11 students at Glenthorne.
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