Before the Ever After
By Jacqueline Woodson
The book is from the perspective of a young boy who has a NFL player for a father. Something is not right with his dad. He isn't acting like himself- moody, headaches, etc. ZJ is doing the best he can to hold onto the good times and survive his new reality.
I found this book to be interesting because it addresses chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). This is a degenerative brain disease found in people who have suffered repeated blows to the head. I Survived the Attacks on September 11, 2001 also addresses this illness. Both books give some medical information but also help the reader see how you might live with the disease and the emotions/ hardships it brings.
