Story of a Girl [NOOK Book]

From The Critics

As an eighth grader, Deanna Lambert made a mistake: She allowed her older brother Darren's pothead friend Tommy to have sex with her several times in Tommy's car. She did not love Tommy, but his attention felt like the only good thing in her life. Their meetings ended when her father discovered them. Now sixteen, Deanna still experiences fallout from her past. Her classmates in Pacifica, California, have dubbed her the "school slut." Her once-beloved father will not talk to or look at her. And her working-class family seems on the verge of breakdown when Darren and his girlfriend have a baby and move into the Lamberts' basement. Keeping Deanna afloat is her unrealistic dream that she and Darren's little family will save money from their minimum-wage jobs and move out. She also has positive relationships with Jason, whom she has known since childhood, and Lee, a town newbie who becomes Jason's girlfriend. Although she loves them both, Deanna's jealousy leads to trouble. When she starts work at a pizza restaurant and finds Tommy employed there, her life seems impossibly complicated. Ultimately by taking mature responsibility for her actions, Deanna works through it all. This first-person narrative is unusually sensitive and perceptive. Zarr explores Deanna's emotional life convincingly, and her portrait of young parents working opposite shifts and living with parents to make ends meet is realistic. The skillful use of flashbacks explains how Deanna became involved with Tommy. Dialogue is contemporary and funny. One quibble is the overuse of franchise names. This highly recommended novel will find a niche with older, more mature readers because of frank references to sex and some x-ratedlanguage.