Tag: Shaunta Grimes

I really like books that I didn’t think I would like. Center of Gravity is a book like that. Personally, there’s nothing about the subject matter that appeals to me. Tessa’s mother passed away relatively recently and her dad has started dating again. Things have gotten very serious and the two of them are packing up things in Denver to move to a coastal California town. The new girlfriend is much younger than her dad and her family is apparently loaded. At first, Center of Gravity feels like a middle school companion to Karate Kid. However, as the book moves along it takes a much more serious turn. In doing author Shaunta Grimes delivers a character study that’s as much about teenage grief as it is insecurities, acceptance and moving on. 

An honest look at kids circa 1985 that’s not what you expect