The Art of Running Away
Twelve-year-old Maisie is an artist. When she's in front of her sketchbook or apprenticing at Glenna's Portraits, the family-run art shop her grandmother started, the world makes sense. She doesn't think about Calum, her brother who mysteriously left home and cut ties with her family six years ago, or her parents' insistence that she "broaden her horizons" and try something new--something that isn't art.
But when Glenna's Portraits falls on hard times, Maisie's plan to take over the shop when she's older and become a lifelong artist starts to crumble. In desperation to make things right, Maisie runs away to London to reconnect with her adult brother, hoping he might be the key to saving the shop. But as Maisie learns about her family's past from Calum, she starts to rethink everything she's ever known. Maisie must decide not only if saving her family's art shop is worth it, but if she can forgive her parents for the mistakes they've made.
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Sabrina Kleckner is the author of The Art of Running Away, a middle grade contemporary novel about family and identity. She began writing at the age of twelve, and is grateful to not be debuting with the angsty assassin book she toiled over in her teens. When she is not writing, she can be found teaching ESL or gushing about her three cats to anyone who will listen.
"A gentle exploration of pain, love, and acceptance." --Kirkus Reviews
"A quick and an emotional read that draws readers into the story of these characters...I truly enjoyed this book." --School Library Connection
"With many emotional scenes involving themes of identity, family, passion, and forgiveness, Kleckner's charming debut features a mature young heroine that readers will enjoy following as she manages familial conflict and resolution." --Booklist
