She flushed the toilet several times as she sat on the floor waiting to feel normal again. Finally, uncontrollably, and forcefully, all her distress erupted and she lost her lunch in heaves and waves of vomiting. Her breath became more shallow, and her nausea more intense. She lifted the toilet lid, gazed into the water, and wished she could disappear into its depths. But her head continued to spin, and her stomach churned. Sinking down on the soft blue rug in front of the toilet, she was grateful for the momentary stability of the floor. She touched her forehead and found it warm and glazed with sweat. NOVEMBER NELSON LURCHED TO THE BATHROOM, feeling faint and not quite in control of her suddenly unsteady legs. But will hiding behind shoulder pads really help? And will his gridiron obsession prevent him from being there for his cousin’s girlfriend when she needs him most? Excerpt At the same time, he begins playing football, where he hopes the physical pain will suppress the emotional agony. He finds the only way he can escape the emptiness he feels is to quit doing the things that made him happy when his cousin was alive, such as playing his beloved trumpet. His world becomes divided into “before” and “after” Josh’s death. Jericho Prescott lost his best friend when he lost his cousin, Josh, and the pain is almost more than he can bear. How in the world will she tell her mom? And how will Josh’s parents take the news? She’s never needed a friend more. She’s pregnant and now she’s faced with the biggest decision of her life. But Josh left something behind that will change November’s life forever. When November Nelson loses her boyfriend, Josh, to a pledge stunt gone horribly wrong, she thinks her life can’t possibly get any worse. Draper’s Jericho Trilogy and Coretta Scott King Honor Book, Jericho and November are locked together in pain from the past and fear for the future, and it feels as though there’s no way to escape either.

Sharon m draper november blues