The Summer of Owen Todd by Tony Abbott

As a father of young children I always worry about whether or not I have given them the tools to handle stranger danger or even danger from familiar faces (statistically children are more likely to be abused by a family member). One such way I can do is by looking for literature that handles difficult topics in a sensitive manner. Luckily, The Summer of Owen Todd by Tony Abbott does just that.

It starts off like any other summer for Owen Todd on Cape Cod...visions of baseball, go karting and beaches fill his head...it's going to be a long, fun summer. His best friend Sean has similar plans but due to extenuating circumstances his mom hires a babysitter. The babysitter turns out to have other plans up his sleeve besides mere babysitting and Sean confides in Owen.

Owen is shocked by the revelations and  his tween mind struggles with what  to do with the information especially when he considers what revealing the truth could do to the tight-knit community. Owen could take the easy route out as he has his own issues to deal with. He never loses sight of the big picture which is that what someone-a grown up no less- has done something wrong to his best friend and as a friend he should try to do something about it.

It would be easy to blame Sean's mother what with all that she has to do and the other mitigating factors. Like many single parents she has a lot on her plate and in trying to make ends meet decides to use a familiar resource.

The author also includes an afterword that implores readers to use many of the resources available if they know or suspect sexual abuse is occurring (if you see something, say something). Although there aren't graphic descriptions of events, the subject matter may be better understood by children aged 9+.  A good read for adults to share with younger ones is Some Secrets Should Never be Kept by Jayneen Sanders.