Valley Girls

When 17-year-old Rilla is busted for partying 24 hours into arriving in Yosemite National Park to live with her park ranger sister, it's a come-to-Jesus moment.

Determined to make up for her screw-up and create a stable new home for herself, Rilla charms her way into a tight-knit group of climbers. But Rilla can't help but be seduced by experiences she couldn't have imagined back home. She sets her sights on climbing El Capitan, one of the most challenging routes in Yosemite, and her summer becomes one harrowing and ecstatic experience after another: first climb, first fall two thousand feet in the air, first love. But becoming the person Rilla feels she was meant to be jeopardizes the reasons why she came to Yosemite - a bright new future and a second chance at sisterhood. When her family and her future are at odds, what will Rilla choose?

“"This YA is reminiscent of Cheryl Strayed's Wild and will resonate with fans of coming-of-age and survival stories."”

This YA is reminiscent of Cheryl Strayed’s Wild and will resonate with fans of coming-of-age and survival stories. School Library Journal
There’s an equitable diversity here: Adeena, one of the climbers who mentors Rilla, is a Muslim Pakistani woman, and Gage, another climber, is Korean-American. Rilla and her half sister, Thea, were raised by polyamorous parents . . . This story may find its niche with readers who enjoy climbing. Kirkus Reviews
Lemon (Done Dirt Cheap, 2017) deftly navigates one girl’s growing self-awareness, and pairs it with a frank discussion of economic diversity. Booklist

Born and raised in the Appalachians, Sarah Nicole Lemon now lives and writes in her home in southern Maryland. She is also the author of Done Dirt Cheap, published in March 2017 by Amulet.

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