The Weight of a Thousand Feathers

Scottish teen Bobby Seed, 17, finds himself caring for both his 14-year-old brother, Dan, whose undiagnosed psychosocial condition leads to developmentally younger behavior, and his mother, whose advanced multiple sclerosis makes her dependent on Bobby for basic needs. Witty, upbeat conversations between mother and son do not disguise the anguish caused by the family’s unplanned role reversals. An invitation to join a support group brings Bobby a welcome weekly respite as well as relationships with other teens who truly understand his predicament. Bobby’s emotional challenges reach a crisis point when his mother asks him to help end her life. Through Bobby’s conversational narrative voice (“Ever want to piss someone off? Tell them you understand their pain: that’ll work a treat”) peppered with snippets of poetry, Conaghan (The Bombs that Brought Us Together) deftly manages his heavy subject matter, conveying both the particular conundrums caused by Bobby’s atypical responsibilities and more predictable teenage challenges regarding sexual identity, friendships, and experimentation. This illuminating, thought-provoking novel offers a compassionate exploration of the weighty responsibilities that one teenage caregiver faces. Ages 14–up. (Feb.)