Story of a Girl (Paperback)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: comp book, Dee Dee, Deanna Lambert, Terra Nova (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Starred Review. Grade 9 Up—When Deanna's father catches her having sex in a car when she is 13, her life is drastically changed. Two years later, he still can't look her in the eye, and though Tommy is the only boy she's been with, she is branded the school slut. Her entire family watches her as though she is likely to sleep with anyone she sees, and Tommy still smirks at and torments her when she sees him. Her two best friends have recently begun dating, and Deanna feels like an intruder. She tries to maintain a close relationship with her older brother, but Darren and his girlfriend are struggling as teenage parents. Deanna learns to protect herself by becoming outwardly tough, but feels her isolation acutely. Her only outlet is her journal in which she writes the story of an anonymous girl who has the same experiences and feelings that she does. Through this, readers see the potential that Deanna cannot identify in herself. This is a heartbreaking look at how a teenager can be defined by one mistake, and how it shapes her sense of self-worth. This is realistic fiction at its best. Zarr's storytelling is excellent; Deanna's reactions to the painful things said to her will resonate with any reader who has felt like an outsider. It is an emotionally charged story, with language appropriate to the intensity of the feelings. Story of a Girl is recommended for both teens and the adults who live and work with them.—Stephanie L. Petruso, Anne Arundel County Public Library, Odenton, MD
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

*Starred Review* Deanna was 13 when her father caught her and 17-year-old Tommy having sex. Three years later, she is still struggling with the repercussions: how Tommy jokingly made her into the school slut; how the story became legend in her small town; how her father looked at her then--and now doesn't look at her at all. Her brother, Darren, has mistakes to handle, too: he lives with his girlfriend and their baby in his parents' basement. And while Deanna's mother seems numb, her father is perpetually angry and depressed. Meanwhile, in a misguided search for love brought on by the confusion of seeing Tommy again, Deanna intentionally hurts her two closest friends. Although she's more aware than most how a single event can define a person, Deanna still struggles to gain insight into herself, her family, and her friends. When she finally does, she's able to create small but positive changes in her relationships with them all. Characters are well drawn, especially Deanna, whose complicated, deeply felt emotions turn the story. There are plenty of heartbreaking moments, too, including a poignant confrontation with Tommy. Though nothing is miraculously fixed by the close, everyone's perspective has changed for the better. This is a thoughtful, well-executed debut from an author who understands how to write for teens. Krista Hutley
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (February 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316014540
• ISBN-13: 978-0316014540
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #12,692 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #23 in	Books > Children's Books > People & Places > Social Situations > Self-Esteem & Self-Respect > Fiction
  #42 in	Books > Teens > Social Issues > Dating & Intimacy > Fiction

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Forgiveness and the Average Girl, June 4, 2007

By	Kelly Herold "Big A little a" (Smalltown, Midwest) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Story of a Girl (Hardcover)

Imagine you made a mistake as a teenager. A big mistake. Now imagine you made this mistake in a small town when you were thirteen years old.

Sara Zarr's moving "Story of a Girl" tells just this tale from the point of view of sixteen-year-old Deanna Lambert. At age 13, Deanna was caught "in the act" with her older brother's best friend. By her father. Oh, and Deanna and the boy were in a parked car.

Small towns being what they are, it takes only a day for Deanna's story to spread throughout Pacifica. From that moment on Deanna is the "school sl*t" (despite the fact she's avoided boys since the incident) and at home life isn't much better. Dad--nearly three years later--has yet to recover from finding his daughter in a car with a seventeen-year-old boy and he barely talks to Deanna.

"Story of a Girl" opens on the final day of Deanna's sophomore year. She's feeling stuck--in her small town, in her reputation, and in her family. Zarr does a great job in showing the depression--economic and emotional--of a place down on its luck. Deanna's only job option is a rundown pizza joint. Her parents professional lives have been downsized--Mom working in a Mervyns and Dad in an auto parts supply store. Deanna's much-loved older brother lives in the basement with his new wife and baby. Deanna's brother and his wife work in the grocery store. With everyone working retail hours, no one is home at the same time and the house is sliding into disrepair.

Deanna dreams of escape--of saving her money and moving out with her brother and his family. But escape is hard to come by when you are sixteen and live in a small town. Instead, Deanna must come to terms with what happened and forgive herself and others. Over the course of just this one summer, Deanna, with a few mistakes along the way, finds peace with herself, her reputation, her town, and her family. It's a beautiful gem of a book, one that will stay with me forever.

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An honest book with a lot of heart, July 16, 2007

By	Debra Garfinkle "author of books for teens an... (Orange County, CA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Story of a Girl (Hardcover)

This story grabbed me from page one. What drew me in were the interesting setting and true-to-life characters-- not just the teenage girl narrating the book, but her three-dimensional friends and coworkers and family, all with their own stories and heartaches and flaws. The story seems simple: A girl in a small working-class town near San Francisco cannot leave her bad reputation behind and cannot get her father's forgiveness. Or can she? But the story is not really simple, because the people in it are so complicated. By writing with honesty and truth and heart, Zarr made me feel deeply about all the characters and about how their stories would resolve.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Life of a Teenaged Girl, June 12, 2007

By	Reader Views "www.readerviews.com" (Austin, Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Story of a Girl (Hardcover)

Reviewed by Tara Hammack (age 16) for Reader Views (5/07)

"Story of a Girl" is a great story about a girl named Deanna who is clamed to be a skank because of her brothers supposed best friend Tommy took advantage of a lonely thirteen-year-old. Deanna never said stop because he made her feel like she mattered to him, but when her dad fallowed them one day nothing was the same. Tommy went and told his friends a story but not the real story.

Three years later, she was still named as the slut of the school. She did have a couple of friends -- Lee and Jason, they're a couple. It's the summer after freshman year and a summer I don't think she'll ever forget. Her father hasn't really looked at or talked to her after the Tommy accident. Her brother Darren had his own problems; he got this girl Stacy pregnant and they live at home in the basement with the baby.

Well, Deanna has this other life she daydreams about -- she, Stacy, Darren, and the baby April would move out and have a great life together. That's the reason she went and got a job but guess who was working there...Tommy. I know, right, this caught me by surprise. She also has this boss Michael; he's the coolest boss ever. He's someone she feels understands her and he listens to what she has to say. One day Stacy didn't come to pick her up from work so she gets a ride to her work thinking she was there because her car was in the parking lot but she wasn't there. She started to walk home, and yes, Tommy comes up beside her with his car and tells her to get in and he'll take her home. Knowing that he wouldn't ever do anything to hurt her she got in. Okay, if you want to know what happens, read the book because I'm not going to say any more.

"Story of a Girl" is a great book for teenagers to read; it is a real page-turner. I hardly ever put it down. It was so well written that I thought I was watching a movie, like I wasn't even reading at all, and that's what I call a great book.