Safekeeping

By: Karen Hesse

Narrated by: Jenna Lamia

Radley's parents had warned her that all hell would break loose if the American People's Party took power. And now, with the president assassinated and the government cracking down on citizens, the news is filled with images of vigilante groups, frenzied looting, and police raids. It seems as if all hell has broken loose.

Coming back from volunteering abroad, Radley just wants to get home to Vermont, and the comfort and safety of her parents. Travel restrictions and delays are worse than ever, and by the time Radley's plane lands in New Hampshire, she's been traveling for over twenty-four hours. Exhausted, she heads outside to find her parents—who always come, day or night, no matter when or where she lands—aren't there.

Her cell phone is dead, her credit cards are worthless, and she doesn't have the proper travel papers to cross state lines. Out of money and options, Radley starts walking. . . .

This is a vision of a future America that only Karen Hesse could write: real, gripping, and deeply personal.

©2012 Karen Hesse (P)2012 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

“By turns tender and terrified, Jenna Lamia's voice brings tight focus to this first-person account of 17-year-old Radley's efforts to find her way home after political upheaval rocks the U.S…Lamia holds on to listeners' sympathy for the dumpster diving heroin, who is so fearful that she never musters the courage to ask what's going on as she focuses on day-to-day survival.” —AudioFile Magazine, winner of AudioFile Earphones Award

“Narrator Jenna Lamia delivers an entertaining, top-notch performance; her reading of this first person tale is crisp and well paced, and she proves completely convincing playing a maturing teenage girl, lending Radley a youthful voice that is soothing and earnest. Because of her quality narration, the audiobook is compelling throughout.” —Publishers Weekly

“The focus of the story, set in the near future, is primarily on Radley's emotions and fears, and Lamia's reading pace and varied pitch highlight the teenager's uneasiness.” —Booklist

Enjoayable

If you could sum up Safekeeping in three words, what would they be?

Simplistic, realistic, emotional

Have you listened to any of Jenna Lamia’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Not as good as the Invention of Wings but she is pretty good at what she does.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I did listen to it in one sitting