L.E.A.P.

Life as a young adolescent is fraught with a daily gauntlet of socioemotional events while searching for genuine identities that fit! In L. E. A. P., Bellon captures the emotions that run on a loop through 14-year-old Linn's mind as she navigates friends, her brother, dad, and her mercurial mom who's fighting her own demons in a never-ending war. Bellon's dry humor with lines such as, "The Fourth of July always has sales, and I need some new genes" will keep you LYAO; but Linn's reality digs deeply into your soul as you cheer for her to find solace in a seemingly impossible journey toward adulthood. You'll laugh and cry as Bellon's story telling places you directly into the uncertainty of adolescence - that feeling of being frozen in time between the joys of ignorant childhood and the promise of ever-elusive adult-like opportunities - "juvenescence" as Bellon labels it.
Dave F. Brown, EdD., young adolescent researcher and author of Young Adolescents and the Middle Schools They Need.

Funny and tragic, poignant and powerful, Bellon draws on personal experience to weave the tale of a mother-daughter relationship strained to the point of breaking by mom's alcoholism. But search beneath those tumultuous waves to find perhaps the real story: an inspiring and realistic depiction of sibling survival against the odds.
Chris Negron, acclaimed author of Underdog City, The Last Super Chef, and Dan Unmasked

Thirteen-year-old Linn is a liar, and, in her family, this is an asset. Everyone lies to keep the 'perfect family' illusion intact. But only two people think the illusion is working and they are Linn's parents. Changing would require acknowledging that Linn's mother is an alcoholic and neither of her parents is ready for that. Linn and her brother Brendan do what is required to survive in an unpredictable and unsupportive home. Above all else, they must pretend to be perfect, even as their problems worsen.

L.E.A.P.: Linn's Emerging Adult Plan by Toni Bellon is an honest view into the life of a teen living with an alcoholic parent and the systemic dysfunction that happens in a family that tries to pretend everything is normal. Readers will love Linn and her insightful, pragmatic nature. Bellon is a masterful storyteller and Linn's journey toward adulthood is entertaining, heartbreaking, and hopeful.
Kim Ottesen, Programming Manager, Forsyth County Public Library

Toni Bellon

Toni Bellon retired as Assistant Dean of Education from the University of North Georgia. She left to care for her alcoholic mother who suffered from Dementia and Parkinson's. During that time, writing became cathartic. Toni uses humor, hoping that her snarky view of life brings a smile to anyone who's reading. After living in nine states, Toni now resides in Atlanta Georgia. She is a member of the Atlanta Writers Club, A Novel Idea, and multiple critique groups. Grandma is her favorite title.