Little & Lion

Suzette, nicknamed Little by her step-brother Lionel, aka Lion, comes home to California from her New England boarding school at the beginning of summer hoping that her brother's bipolar disorder is under control. It seems as though things have improved somewhat though he no longer hangs out with their common friends. When he confides to her that he's no longer taking his medication, she is torn between her loyalty to him and her desire to tell her parents. At the same time, she's struggling with guilt over a relationship she had at school with her roommate and the feelings she now has for a childhood friend. The two step-siblings, whose relationship is definitely put to the test, are both sympathetic and realistic as is Lion's battle of living with bipolar disorder. Little & Lion is a well-crafted novel of friendship, family, courage, and hope.