Blue Banyan Books Off Track

Off Track by Tamika Gibson is an intense yet wistful, funny, and ultimately inspiring novel, that makes a great addition to the repertoire of dramatic teen romances. Told from the engaging perspectives of dual protagonists 16 year-old Kayla Francis and 17 year-old Joel de Freitas, the novel explores Caribbean high school athletics, where success brings more than glory.Focused and gifted with unrelenting drive, Kayla has one goal - to make it to the Trinidad and Tobago Olympic team. But Kayla has no interest in glory or fame. The focus and determination that makes her the envy of her teammates come because for her track is a path out of the circle of things to be fixed, near empty bellies, and always waiting for the end of the month. All she wants is a chance to break out from poverty slowly eating away at her mother and grinding down her younger sisters and escape the violence always at the edge of their world in the form of their aunt’s abusive, lecherous boyfriend. So, she has no tim