Pieces of Me [Hardcover]

Charlotte Gingras (Author), Susan Ouriou (Translator)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2009

Mirabelle's art teacher tells her she has talent, but what good is it doing her? Almost fifteen and friendless, Mira is plagued by dark thoughts. Her body seems to be changing daily. Her mother is domineering and half-crazy and her father -- well, he's her ex-father, mostly out of Mira's life and awkward when he's around. Then she meets free-spirited, confident Catherine, a knockout who makes the boys' jaws drop. Not only is Catherine good at art like Mira, she also knows about kissing boys. Mira has never kissed anyone and doesn't understand the hungry way boys are beginning to look at her. Now that Mira's finally found someone she can talk to, her dark thoughts are vanishing. But as her friend encourages her to come out of her shell, Mira finds that her new-found confidence can still be shattered in an instant. Only after Mira faces a betrayal and a tragedy can she begin to put the fragmented pieces of herself together.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 7–10—"I'm almost fifteen and I have no friends." So begins the spare narrative of desperately lonely Mirabel, who lives in a half-basement apartment with her mentally ill mother, seeing her father only during sporadic, awkward visits. Suffocating under her mother's paranoid control, black-clad Mira hides in books and in her school's library, and at home, in her aspirations to someday become a wildlife writer and artist. In art class, she is recognized by her teacher, called "the birdman," as having rare talent, if only she would complete assignments. Everything changes when a gorgeous new girl transfers to Mira's school. Cath is different and confident, and she introduces Mira to a world of friendship, color, and experimentation with boys. Then, when Cath betrays her by seemingly "stealing" a boy, the friendship shatters and, with it, Mira's newfound happiness. Gingras's translated narrative is decidedly French in feel; dramatic, almost forcefully poetic; and crowded with symbolism: dying/stark vs. colorful trees; broken/caged vs. healed/free birds; Mira's long, braided hair cut short at the end to symbolize freedom from her mother's tyranny. Mira explores her burgeoning sexuality in part through a growing obsession with the birdman, who fights returning her feelings in a theatrical scene. Ultimately the teen sees a new school therapist, a blind woman who "sees" Mira and her problems and helps her to move forward. Although it may appeal to fans of Laurie Halse Anderson's Speak (Farrar, 1999), the story is overdone, forced, and much too easily resolved.—Riva Pollard, Prospect Sierra Middle School, El Cerrito, CA
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Review

Many teens will relate to Mira’s tattered relationships with her parents, as well as her broiling resentment.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: Kids Can Press (March 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1554532426
• ISBN-13: 978-1554532421
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 4.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,109,757 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)