In Erica Kent's evocative novel Black Dog, we journey through the turbulent landscapes of adolescence, loss, and the blurry lines between reality and dream. It's 1980, and eleven-year-old Jessica Ryder wakes up to discover that John Lennon has been killed. In a misguided effort to assuage her grief, her father shares a beer with her, marking the beginning of a years-long dance with drugs and booze that will lead her down a harrowing, and sometimes darkly humorous, path. Jessica's full of contradictions: irreverent but romantic, smart but short-sighted, damaged but resilient. She grapples with the weight of tragedy and life, scrapes bottom, and finally discovers the elusive route to recovery, along with a hard truth: the black dog of addiction doesn't die. Both shadows and shafts of light cut through Jessica's story as it spans across the 1980' s. Kent's lyrical prose and poignant storytelling create a haunting and unforgettable portrait of growing up in a world both chaotic and beautiful.