Scrambled Eggs at Midnight by Brad Barkley and Heather Hepler 

“My mother is a wench. It says so on her w-2″ and so starts this quirky novel. 

Calliope and her mother are on the move a lot. Her mom makes jewelry which she sells at Renaissance Faires along with serving as a wench. They have a very strained relationship, to say the least. Cal’s mom, Delores, has the tendency to run from things. She packed Cal up a few years back, taking her from her loving father and stable home life.  Cal has been taking care of Delores ever since.

Eliot lives with his mom and dad outside of Asheville, NC. They run a  “Christian” weight-loss camp.  “The Dad,” as Eliot calls him, broke his back years ago and from that experience he turned to Jesus.  Eliot and his mom have been basically unhappy ever since. Their family life has deteriorated. The fun care free times are gone.  His dad has cashed in on Christianity and now everything is about making more money.

When Cal and her mom move to the Asheville area for a Renaissance Faire, Eliot and Cal meet and they connect immediately. Their love story is very sweet. They help one another through the turmoil of being a teenager in an adult controlled world.

 One aspect that I thought was interesting, without giving too much away, was it showed how in many situations parents create the illusion that their children have some say in important life matters, when in actuality the parents have already made up their minds and have no intention of hearing what their children have to say.  I think it’s interesting and wonder why a lot of us parents don’t listen to our children more often. 

 I really enjoyed the narration from the point of view of both Calliope and Eliot. Each chapter switches from one character to the other and it makes for good reading.

I think a lot of teens would enjoy this book and I give it  3.75 out of 5 stars.