Early Trauma

Today, something is going to happen to an innocent child. Tomorrow, that child will walk into their school. What happens next will impact the rest of their life. What is this powerful event? Childhood trauma. Most students will experience some form of emotional, physical, or sexual abuse, neglect, family dysfunction, racism, homelessness, or poverty by their 18th birthday. If left untreated, their traumatic experience may have lasting implications on their physical and mental health and their success in school.

A vibrant, bighearted coming-of-age story about a young woman caught between loving and leaving Oakland—the whiplash between trauma, dreams, and all the things that shape us below the surface. Anastasia Ān Xiá Huang is the third generation of her family to live in Oakland, but now, in her...