The Secret to Belonging, Megan E. Freeman
The Secret to Belonging, Megan E. Freeman
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The Secret to Belonging

Author: Megan E. Freeman

Narrator: Megan E. Freeman

Unabridged: 2 hr 33 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 09/15/2026


Synopsis

Three starred reviews!

A neglected teen travels to Norway for a fresh start in this “lush…aching” (Publishers Weekly, starred review) coming-of-age novel in verse about longing, love, and the courage to create joy from the ashes of despair by award-winning and New York Times bestselling author Megan E. Freeman.

You are invisible in your own family. Your parents spend all their care and attention on your brother, who is addicted to drugs. Your dreams don’t matter to anyone but you.

Your only ticket out is a college fund left by your grandfather—until your parents use it to pay for your brother’s drug rehab.

Just when your future seems about to collapse, you are offered a lifeline: a scholarship to become an exchange student in a remote part of Norway. It’s an invitation to begin a new life in a new place with new people…a place where you might finally feel like you belong.

About Megan E. Freeman

Megan E. Freeman attended an elementary school where poets visited her classroom every week, and she has been a writer ever since. She writes middle grade and young adult fiction. Megan is also a Pushcart Prize–nominated poet. An award-winning teacher with decades of classroom experience, Megan taught multiple subjects across the arts and humanities to students of all ages. She divides her time between northern Colorado and the Texas Gulf Coast. Visit her online at MeganEFreeman.com.


Reviews

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Quotes

"Eloquent and hauntingly spare." — Winner of an Earphones Award, Kirkus Reviews

"Eloquent and hauntingly spare." — Winner of an Earphones Award, Kirkus Reviews

"Freeman performs her novel in verse with a sensitivity to lines and rhythms, carefully conveying the immense spectrum of feelings in this poignant audiobook. The unnamed narrator, in her junior year of high school, is counting the days until she can escape a fragmented family where she feels invisible. The concise writing accentuates the rapid-fire drama as her parents take her allocated tuition funds to support her brother in rehab. Freeman expresses the desperation and despair that drive the heroine to apply for and receive a scholarship to study in Norway, even though she knows none of the country’s culture or language. Freeman describes a caring Norwegian family, a first love, and the places and people that help the protagonist discover true belonging." — Winner of an Earphones Award, Kirkus Reviews