Didi, 15, is a high-school junior and the school's fastest runner, due to her single father training her from a very early age. He's also trained her in chess, hunting, shooting, and obedience: don't talk to strangers, don't take things from strangers, and don't let strangers know about the trouble stick, a rifle he beats her with when he is displeased with her skills. Didi's father is an angry man, but she believes he only wants her to be the best: a grand master at chess, faster, better, good enough, and a worthy opponent, though he never says what game they'll be playing. The perspective alternates among Didi at ages 15, 5, 11, and 8 years old, with snippets of what we assume is present-day Didi being hunted by someone or something. Reading as a nonlinear stream of consciousness, with paragraphs and quotes added in seemingly at random, this novel is not for all readers: the abuse, both physical and mental, is definitely written so as to be realistic and difficult enough to trigger some.

Isolated with her abusive, domineering father, 15-year-old Didi learns to survive in a reality where even a simple chess game spells danger.On the outskirts of town, Didi lives alone with her father. No trace of her long-gone mom remains except for a collection of Nancy Mitford novels. Running drills around the house is an early-morning ritual, often under the harsh command of her father. "Be quick, be fast, be strong!" becomes her mantra. At the age of 5, Didi studies the game of chess, with her father's intentions clear: to build her skills up to the level of a master or else face the trouble stick. At 8, Didi discovers the brutal truths of hunting in a traumatizing experience that leaves the young girl even more spiritually wounded. "God won't love me anymore. I exploded a bird." A brisk and brutal read, Griffin's latest offers vivid snapshots of a young life held captive by an egotistical tyrant, loaded with suggestions (not always explicit) of physical abuse. The author flits quickly between short chapters, quoted Mitford passages, and other lyrical asides rather ingeniously conveying Didi's fragile mentality under duress. There's very little levity here, with the primary source of goodness-a compassionate neighbor who acknowledges Didi's plight-shuffled off the pages about halfway through. The ending's at once unsurprising and jarring, tied together with a small measure of hope that feels slightly untrustworthy. A White default is assumed.Harrowing and intriguing. (Fiction. 14-18)

Gr 10 Up Being the fastest runner, a master at chess, and able to take down an animal while hunting in one shot are Didi's father's hopes for her. He claims to love her, but that doesn't appear to be the case when she fails at his expectations, and he cruelly punishes her. Growing up, Didi knows she has to be wise when dealing with her father. The older she gets, the more obvious things become. Didi's father has always taught her to be prepared, but is he prepared for how well he prepared her? Griffin has crafted a book that is part thriller and part realistic horror. Told in the third person, the book opens with a teenage Didi but then quickly switches to her at a young age, followed by several time jumps. Focusing on an abusive parent, the book's content might trigger some readers. Didi's father walks in on her while she is changing multiple times, hits her with a rifle, and denies her food and clothing. Readers will be turning the pages to figure out just how Didi's story ends. Didi has brown hair, but her and her father's race are never stated. VERDICT An intense read best given with caution. Amanda Borgia