Emily Elizabeth Beam

Emily Elizabeth Beam is the main character and heroine of this novel. She is sent to Amherst School for Girls by her parents and her aunt after her boyfriend shoots himself in the school library at Grenfell County High School. Before he killed himself Paul had gotten Emily from her class and showed her the gun. He’d asked her to marry him and keep the baby she was carrying, but Emily refused. Emily comes to ASG believing she was responsible for Paul’s death and feeling guilty about having an abortion.

On the first day at her new school, Emily begins writing poetry. She is unable to stop the words that come to her mind. The majority of her poems deal with her relationship with Paul, the events that led to her pregnancy, their breakup, and her decision to have an abortion. Even as Emily...