Young Love and Loss

"Nothing ever really goes away - it just changes into something else.  Something beautiful."

Beautiful is a great word to use to describe this novel, Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler.  Other good words to describe this novel are: devastating, heart-breaking, joyous, and free.

I heard about this novel last year because it was being challenged (people were trying to have it removed from libraries) in some parts of the country.  Adults weren't happy with the sexual activity portrayed in the story, or with the part of the storyline in which two teenage girls agree to try to find twenty boys to hook up with in one summer.

After reading this novel, it's clear to me that those who challenged based on those grounds didn't read it (as is often the case).  If they had read it, they would have seen it for what it actually is.  A beautiful story about two girls who lose one of the most important people in their lives, and try to cope with their loss however they can.

Anna and Frankie are the teenage girls at the center of the story.  They are next-door neighbors and two-thirds of a lifelong best friend trio.  The third member is Frankie's older brother, Matt.  Two years older than the girls, Matt has always been their protector and leader.  At the age of ten, Anna fell in love with him.  On the night of her fifteenth birthday, she finally finds out that Matt is in love with her too.  For the next month, Anna and Matt meet secretly at night, testing out their new relationship and figuring out the best way to tell Frankie.  Matt wants to be the one to tell her and makes Anna promise not to say anything.  He plans on telling Frankie when they take their annual family trip to California.

But then the unthinkable happens.  He dies the day before they are to leave for the trip.

After a grief-filled year, Anna is now the one making the trip with Frankie and her parents to Zanzibar Bay, California.  Frankie has spent the year trying to deal with her brother's death with makeup, boys, and secret cigarettes.  Anna has spent the year trying to fulfill her promise to Matt and take care of Frankie.  In preparation for California, Frankie decides that they should make it their goal to meet one boy per day, twenty in all, so that they can each have one summer fling during what is supposed to be the Absolute Best Summer Ever.  The trip unfolds in ways that neither girl could predict, as emotions are broken open and wounds are made and healed.

I really enjoyed this book and the emotional journey on which it took me.  My heart broke for both girls for different reasons, and I believe readers will be able to associate with either Frankie or Anna.  Even if you've never suffered a loss as they did, the characters are so personable and easily relatable that it's easy to put yourself in their shoes.  Readers will find themselves rooting for these girls, and pulling for them in their struggle to figure out how to live the new post-Matt lives in which they find themselves.

Recommended for readers in high school and above.

What Happens "After"?

I realize it's been a little while since I last posted, but I needed some time to process the book I recently finished, "After" by Amy Efaw.

This intense book tells the story of Devon Davenport, 16-year-old honors student and premier soccer player.  Though she seems to have everything going for her, Devon's home life is strained.  Her single mother's immaturity and focus on men forces Devon to mother herself.  Because of this relationship, Devon holds herself to ridiculously high standards and a set of rules that is nearly impossible for anyone to maintain.  When Devon breaks one of her rules and becomes pregnant, her disappointment in herself leads to a state of denial about her situation.  When the baby is born on the floor of her apartment bathroom, Devon does the unthinkable...wraps the baby in a garbage bag and throws her in a dumpster.

Devon is arrested the next morning, after almost dying from post-delivery complications, and is placed in the juvenile detention facility to await her trial.  For a girl like Devon, who has never done a wrong thing in her life, this is more than a shock and it takes a little while for reality to set in.  Her lawyer, Dom, works to prepare her for her declination hearing, which will decide whether she'll be tried as a juvenile or adult.  Through her sessions with Dom, Devon recalls the events that brought her to that place, and faces a lot of realities about her life, some harsher than others.

My first thought about this book was that I was disappointed that it was told in third person.  I expected a story like this to be told through Devon herself, rather than an outside narrator.  It took me a little while to get used to the "Devon did this...Devon did that" style of writing.  But as I read more, I realized that it was actually quite fitting to the story, as Devon's denial makes her see the situation as something that is happening TO her from the outside rather than something of which she is a part.

"After" is definitely not the easiest story to read, especially when the birth scenes are finally played out, but I think it's an important story to tell.  We often hear about these cases where babies are dumped shortly after birth.  I know that I've always felt that the mothers who do that are horrible people, but this book gave me a different perspective.  I realize now that some of them are probably sick and troubled in ways we don't consider.  That's not to say that their actions should be excused, which the author addresses well through Devon's decisions at the end of the story, but they are ill people who need help.  The power of denial as a coping mechanism is very strong and makes people do things they normally would never do.  Sadly, the victims in these instances are innocent and defenseless.

It's important to note that many states have laws that protect people from being prosecuted if they drop their babies at acceptable places, like hospitals.  Many people are like Devon, incapable or unwilling to raise a child or afraid of what will happen when others find out about the pregnancy.  Rather than harming the children, they can be taken to hospitals, police stations, and fire departments within the first 24-36 hours of birth.  I don't think that's a widely known fact in our country, and it needs to be shared.

Teens especially need to be aware of these laws.  Many of the dumpster baby stories that we hear involve teen mothers who have hidden their pregnancy or claim they did not know they were pregnant.  When the babies appear, they panic.  They need to know that there are people out there who will help them give their babies up responsibly.  Devon learns during the hearing that there are many people in her life who would have helped her if she had asked, and I think there are a lot of teens who are unaware of the possible support they could have as well.  Their shame leads them to hide away rather than reach out to anyone around them.

"After" is a thought-provoking story that will leave readers with sadness and satisfaction.  It could be a great read for book clubs and classes, as there will be a great deal of discussion over the issues presented within it.  I recommend this book to people aged 14 and up.

(Photo from readergirlz.blogspot.com)