Dezireen Austin

Altar of Heaven Dezireen Austin

Her life was so awful and now, she realized, it was about to get worse. Thirteen-year-old Araceli had made a mistake at her last school and now she was paying the price. She was yanked out of her public high school and enrolled mid-year into a Catholic school, her dad's alma mater, as if this would be the answer to their family's problems. Araceli's mounting sense of loss from the death of her mother impacts her choices in life, which have far-reaching effects on her relationships and on her faith journey. A new friend and a growing relationship with her grandparents help Araceli to handle the anger and grief inside her. Then a shocking betrayal is discovered. Can Araceli's uncertain faith help her to forgive? If so, how? And most importantly, why? Told with sensitivity, this coming of age novel is about a young girl rising up through sorrow and rediscovering the traditions of her faith and culture. For Araceli, there are troubling questions about the practices of Catholicism, a belief in God, and the definition of family.