Nearly 13 yr old Chance Callahan’s life is pretty good. Her best friend and ‘practically sister’, lives next door. She loves her dog Tiges who is devoted to her, and best of all, the plan to surprise her mum (Nadia) with a house makeover through a TV series I Just Wanted to Say Thank You, has come together. Along with their neighbours from Sudan who Chance now views as family, they have planned this to thank Nadia for all her work with refugee families in their community.

Meeting ‘TV people’ and having them in her house is exciting and weird at the same time, but will soon also turn her happy life upside down and threaten to tear it apart.

One of the TV people has met Chance’s mum years before, but what he remembers about their short meeting, and what Chance has been told all her life – are vastly different.

Meanwhile, Chance and her friends are in trouble at school, for a message sent to a fellow pupil. Chance believes the girl was telling lies and called her out on it, but the school has a different view.

Already dealing with this lie and discussions on the plethora of fake posts online, a lie of growing magnitude at home is all consuming. The more Chance digs, the more she uncovers, pushing her to her limits. Torn between confronting her Mum or bottling it all up, she swings from reason to recklessness, not knowing where to turn. Is she really Chance Callahan or someone else entirely, or even someone in between?

When the complete truth is finally revealed, Chance knows her life will never be the same.

After reading another of Sue Whiting’s novels (Missing), I was excited to read A Book of Chance. I wasn’t disappointed. The author captures the pain, confusion and tumult of her main characters who find themselves in almost unimaginable family situations.

Set in Sydney, Chance’s life is full of good people around her, full of fun and love, friends and a blend of family and cultures. When the very foundation of who she is, is slowly revealed, everything she knows is like smoke tendrils in a breeze – slipping away from her. Gripping!

 Author – Sue Whiting

Age – 10+

Read more reviews of other exciting Sue Whiting novels (Click on a Cover) 

(2020, Harper Collins, Family, Refugee, Sudan, Love, Friends, Social Media, Reality TV, Makeover, Secrets, Lies, Fire, Loss, School, Digital Citizenship, Past, Dog, Animal)