Jean Sylvester is a typical, overthinking adolescent whose painful experience with parallel realities teaches her that while life involves her, it's not always all about her.
She thinks life isn't fair and wishes hers was different. When she witnesses a traumatic accident, she can't help but blame herself for the events leading up to it. In order to be free of the nightmare she has a choice: she can spiral into despair or reconcile herself with the fact that terrible things happen, and some can't be changed.
Splinters is a story about so many things. It starts by looking at the change in our priorities as we move into our teenage years - our desperation for independence and happiness; our vulnerability to change; our misery when things don't turn out as we hoped. There are two things that let you down in life: high expectations and other people.