Every Story Ever Told

In this life-affirming novel of trauma and recovery, a girl searches for a path forward after being forced to confront the reality of gun violence, for fans of Dusti Bowling and Jasmine Warga.

Stevie Jane Cohen-Kaplan's sheltered suburban life is shattered by a mass shooting at a festival in her town. In the aftermath, her brain feels broken. She can't bear to visit her mom, recovering in the hospital under Stevie's dad's watchful eye, or to be pent up in her grandparents' nearby Manhattan apartment.

To escape the apartment and her own thoughts, Stevie starts adventuring around New York City with her best friend, Avi, and a new therapy dog (in training). The trio starts chasing stories--about a neighbor's life after the Holocaust, Stevie's grandfathers who died of AIDS long before she was born, and even about her own mom's activist upbringing. These stories may not bring Stevie all the way back to "normal," but can they help her find a new version of herself?

Written with compassion and care, Every Story Ever Told places readers at the center of their own story and within a larger human tapestry, as one girl tries to make sense of the unthinkable.

Author: Ami Polonsky
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Published: 10/29/2024
Pages: 256
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.71lbs
Size: 7.77h x 5.53w x 0.95d
ISBN: 9780316570978
Audience: Ages 9-12


Review Citation(s):
School Library Journal 08/01/2024 pg. 91
Kirkus Reviews 09/01/2024
Booklist 10/01/2024 pg. 62
Horn Book Magazine 11/01/2024 pg. 96

About the Author
Ami Polonsky is a middle school teacher, mother, and author, among other things. She is the author of World Made of Glass, Gracefully Grayson, and Threads, and invites you to visit her at www.amipolonsky.com