About the Book

Almost Home: Helping Kids Move from Homelessness to Hope Published in August 2012 For more information on the book go to: http://www.almosthomethebook.com/ This book tells the stories of six remarkable young people from across the United States and Canada as they confront life alone on the streets. Each eventually finds his or her way to Covenant House, the largest charity serving homeless and runaway youth in North America. From the son of a crack addict who fights his own descent into drug addiction to a teen mother reaching for a new life, their stories veer between devastating and inspiring as they each struggle to find a place called home. • Discusses the root causes of homelessness among young people, and policy recommendations to address them • Provides action steps readers can take to fight youth homelessness and assist individual homeless young people • Written by Kevin Ryan, president of Covenant House, and Pulitzer Prize winner and former New York Times writer Tina Kelley Inviting us to get to know homeless teens as more than an accumulation of statistics and societal issues, this book gives a human face to a huge but largely invisible problem and offers practical insights into how to prevent homelessness and help homeless youth move to a hopeful future. For instance, one kid in the book goes on to become a college football player and counselor to at-risk adolescents and another becomes a state kickboxing champion. All the stories inspire us with victories of the human spirit, large and small. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of each book will help support kids who benefit from Covenant House's shelter and outreach services.

What others say about the book: “Almost Home is that rare and special book that inspires us to make a difference." —Cory Booker, Mayor of Newark, New Jersey "The trick of engaging readers on public policy matters is to tell human stories. Suddenly, the person we dismiss, fear, or even judge is alive before us and utterly familiar, and we learn, as we do in this powerful and inspirational book, the true meaning of courage, grace, and hope." —Steve Lopez, New York Times bestselling author of The Soloist "Almost Home accomplishes something very rare in a book about the homeless—it is both descriptive and prescriptive. A vital read for anyone who cares about the future of our society." —Dale Maharidge, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of And Their Children After Them