Candy on the Edge

Carol L. MacKay is a children’s librarian living in Bawlf, Alberta.

From the outside, it looks as if Candy has it all: friends, good grades,
popularity, and a stable home life. So when she gets involved with a
group of reckless, delinquent kids, her parents and friends don’t
understand. Candy doesn’t even understand the attraction she feels
towards this rebellious group, but she knows that she enjoys the
excitement of just being around them.

Set in Saskatoon, Candy on the Edge is a gritty, fast-paced portrayal
of disenfranchised youth. Readers probably won’t understand Candy’s
addiction to this toxic group either, but they will clearly see how
Candy is drawn into a world she didn’t expect—one of crime,
incarceration, and fear.

Don Kerr has captured the teenage voice and presented it here without
compromise, realistically revealing the hurt and anger these kids feel
that sometimes turns into violence. While many of the characters are
street-hardened or embittered by bad beginnings, Kerr inserts a glimmer
of hope here and there. The group does have moments of humanity, when
they do the smallest of decent things, in spite of who they’ve become.
For Candy, doing the right thing is somewhat easier. Given the support
of her true friends and family, and having good examples from throughout
her life to draw upon when things get tough, she comes to realize, more
than ever before, who she really is. Readers will be left with the sense
that these things make all the difference in the world. Recommended.