Don't Blame the Music

In Caroline B. Cooney’s powerful novel about love, independence, and responsibility, a prodigal daughter returns—and a high school senior and her family must cope with the fallout

Things are starting to come together for seventeen-year-old Susan Hall. She has great friends and a major crush on handsome, privileged Anthony Fielding, who has finally begun to show some interest. And she was just asked to be music editor of the yearbook.

Suddenly, her older sister comes home. Ashley ran away at sixteen to join a rock band. For an impossibly short time, her star burned bright. She had a hit song. Now she’s back, filled with bitterness and anger. She hates her parents. She hates her younger sister. But most of all, she hates herself.

As Ashley’s self-destructive behavior starts tearing the family apart, Susan’s life changes in unexpected ways. It becomes harder to maintain her equilibrium, both at school and at home. She still loves her sister, but she’s starting to see things—and people, like Whit, an outcast rock musician—in a different light.

With charity, grace, and a generous heart, Caroline B. Cooney gives us an immensely moving story about what it means to be a family.