Writing from a witty and sardonic adult perspective, Kathleen Martin explores the turmoil of adolescence in this highly original first novel. Since age seven, Penny Maybe has lived in one foster home after another, making her skeptical of just about everything. Arriving at yet another new "home," she expects that eventually something will go wrong and she'll be back at the foster-kid depot. Despite living with quirky and emotionally unstable foster parents, Penny remains undaunted, and decides that the ultimate way to find herself is to do something remarkable - swim Lake Ontario.In a world where adults behave like adolescents, sixteen-year-old Penny will take us back to what we may have forgotten: that first kisses sound like Debussy, that Freddie Mercury ranks up there with God and the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, and that loneliness is just a regular slice of life.

Kathleen Martin is an editor, writer, and executive director of the Canadian Sea Turtle Network. She is the author of six non-fiction books for children. She lives in Halifax.

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