Story of a Girl by Sara Zarr


This is book two for me out of the three YA novels nominated for a California Young Reader Medal this year. As I mentioned before, I’m trying to get a jump start on reading some of the nominees before the students start scrambling for the books.

I actually enjoyed this one more than St. Iggy, and they are actually rather easy to compare. Both deal with dysfunctional families and a young person trying to find his/her place in the world and his/her voice. Unlike Iggy’s parents who have abandoned him in favor of drugs and alcohol, Deanna’s parents have simply checked out emotionally. While part of the problem is that her father caught her with a high school boy when she was only thirteen, you get the sense that the problems started long before this, that she was with Tommy simply because she needed male attention and felt alone and neglected–a feeling many girls can probably relate to if they do not get positive love and attention from their fathers.

Like with last year’s CYRM nominees, I wonder whether young readers will really pick up on these nuances. Will young readers understand the very real problems that underlie the family dysfunction? Will they be able to grasp the transformation she goes through as she begins to forgive those who have hurt her? Will they be able to sympathize with her need to apologize for things people don’t know she has even done?

These are issues that we all struggle with even as adults. I’m just not sure that my middle school readers will really get it.

On the other hand, I really enjoyed the book. I did feel like there was a discrepancy between Deanna’s sometimes immaturity and occasional deep insights. One scene in particular stands out: when her friend Lee is asking for advice about whether or not to have sex with her boyfriend. I felt like what Deanna wanted to tell her friend was incredibly mature–insights into the emotional aspect of a sexual relationship that I think is a little unrealistic for a sixteen-year-old, no matter how experienced or inexperienced she may be. Yet, what she actually says to her friend ends up showing a lack of maturity that is at odds with what she thinks, though much more realistic given her age and situation.

Overall, I thing the book is well done. There are lots of issues to bring up with a young reader, including why young girls might choose to have sex in the first place. Other issues to be aware of include underage drinking, drug use, and bullying.

July 31, 2009  Tags: , , , , ,   Posted in: Young Adult, fiction

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