Harley: Like a Person

Harley: Like a Person by Cat Bauer. paperback edition. ISBN: 9781890817497.

Who is my father? Thats the difficult question faced by Harley Columba, the feisty 14-year-old narrator of Cat Bauers debut novel. Harley lives in a suburb less than an hour from New York City, but it might as well be "four zillion light years away." Shes sure shes adopted, since theres no way those "two psychos" - as she calls her abusive father and bitter mother - could be her parents. Harley tabulates the differences: her eyes blue, their eyes brown; her interest in poetry and painting, their dog-eared stacks of romance novels and Popular Mechanics. Harleys life changes radically after she finds a note signed "Papa loves you forever and a day." As things deteriorate at home, Harleys grades slide and she starts hanging with a wild crowd. As life closes in on her, Harleys search for her "real father" takes her to New York City and the truth at last. Tough, funny, and refreshingly honest, Harley (like a person) is a compelling story of mothers, fathers, daughters, and the healing power of living authentically.