Taylor Before and After

In this heartfelt middle-grade novel, an eighth-grade girl faces the aftermath of a tragic family accident—and struggles to move on.



Taylor Before and After tells the story of middle schooler Taylor Harper through journal entries alternating between two timelines: before and after a drunk driving accident, in which Taylor Harper was a passenger—and her brother was the driver.



Before, Taylor was finally becoming popular, navigating the pressures of friends, frenemies, and a cut-throat initiation challenge by the coolest girl in school. After, she finds herself ostracized, bullied, and facing the glaring silence of things unsaid at school (and at home).



Debut author Jennie Englund writes with compassion and empathy, moving fluidly from effervescence to quiet reflection in this tale of grief, depression, loss, and what comes next. Taylor Before and After is an emotional story of one girl’s journey to self-acceptance.