Fabulous reads – YA novel sheds light on child exploitation

Goodbye, Perfect, Sara Barnard, Pan Macmillan, ISBN: 9781509852864

FIFTEEN-YEAR-OLD Eden and Bonnie are the best of friends. They are as close as close can be, or so Eden thought. Eden wakes up one morning with the police on her doorstep and a confusing message on her cell phone from Bonnie. She’s runaway with her mysterious boyfriend, the boyfriend that Eden knows next to nothing about.

Written from Eden’s point of view, we follow the disturbing tale of Bonnie and her relationship with the unknown Jack, their teacher. We are regaled with an appealing wittiness and frankness from Eden’s character that suits both the book and her 15-year-old mind.

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Eden’s adoptive family dynamics and her sweet and healthy relationship with her own boyfriend, Connor, provide a refreshing side of what could have been a very dark read. Eden is bombarded from all sides to help find Bonnie and is constantly warring within herself between loyalty and dishonesty.

This book was really difficult to read. If issues such as child grooming and child predators are upsetting to you, I would suggest giving this book a wide berth. There are some pretty adult topics addressed and the realistic portrayal of the characters naiveté and innocence makes Goodbye, Perfect that much more disturbing to read.

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