At the Edge of the Haight

At The Edge Of The Haight is a new adult fiction novel that is sadly very realistic. Katherine Seligman does not provide answers or solutions. Seligman showcases the lives of homeless people in San Francisco, California in the section called The Haight.

I would like to say that I have no experience with this lifestyle, but I do. Seligman does not address families living on the street, but the young people who end up there. In graphic detail Seligman describes the harsh environment and the hunger. There is nothing pretty about living on the streets, but for some there is no other choice. Seligman utilizes Maddie, Ash, Fleet, Hope, Root, and Shane to showcase some of the “whys” and in Shane's case sometimes you will never know why. For many outsiders, they cannot accept not knowing or even the knowing. Seligman does not shy away from this dichotomy.

There are no heroes in At The Edge Of The Haight. There are just kids trying to control their own lives in this way. Some do not do well inside of four walls and feel trapped. Fleet is one of these souls and is actually my favorite character. Fleet is steadfast yet lost at the same time. I have seen many people on the street who are very similar to her.

The Haight is slow-paced and told from Maddie's point of view. Seligman does not make her wise or even incredibly foolish. Maddie is just another person escaping her past life of being invisible. Her mother has mental health issues and the last Maddie sees of her she is in a half-way house. Maddie's father disappeared when she was very young. Maddie lived with her cousins until she graduated high school and then she left Los Angeles and went to San Francisco. A place she didn't know and with no one she knew living there. She found the nearest park to sleep and there began her new life at eighteen-years-old.

There is no huge drama. Seligman just shows the reality of the now. At The Edge Of The Haight gives readers a glimpse into some of the mindsets of those you may step over as you walk down the street. Read this book and illuminate your world with the souls living in The Haight.

I received an ARC of this book and I am writing a review without prejudice and voluntarily.