Story of a Girl
by Sara Zarr
by Sara Zarr
STORY OF A GIRL by Sara Zarr
Category: Contemporary
Age Recommendation: Grades 9+
Release Date: 1/10/07
Publisher: Little, Brown
Reviewed by: Amber Gibson
Rating: 5 Stars
Have you ever done something that you wish you could take back? Something that changed your life forever?
We've all been there. We've all done something that we regret. Just like all of us, Deanna was once caught doing something
that she wasn't proud of. Unfortunately for her, it almost ruined her teen years. Just one dumb relationship, sprinkled with
naiveté and trust, and suddenly Deanna finds herself with the vulgar label of the school whore. It wasn't what she'd asked
for; she'd only ever been with one guy. But the stories just won't stop. Like a horrible rerun of a hated sitcom, it seems like
everywhere she turns, Deanna is confronted with what she did one night in a boy's car--and the fact that her father caught
her doing it.
Deanna's story is touching, and the worst example of how one event can seem to define a person's life. But like the fighter
she is, Deanna tries to move on and just live her life as normally as possible, with her two best friends and her family. But her
family life isn't exactly picturesque. Her older brother, his wife Stacy, and their baby daughter are living in the basement. Her
father is always arguing with Stacy, and Deanna thinks that he hates Stacy almost as much as he hates her since that fateful
night when Deanna's life fell apart. Her mother loves her and tries so hard to give Deanna the care that she needs, but
somehow it doesn't quite make up for the fact that their family is just barely scraping by. On top of all that, Deanna doesn't
know if she'll ever make it out of Pacifica, a little dump of a town in the otherwise glamorous state of California.
After sophomore year is over, Deanna is stuck at home all summer. To get out of the house and keep her busy, she gets her
first job at a little local pizza parlor. There, she discovers that the same boy who came so close ruining her life three years
earlier is now her co-worker. While she struggles to understand her feelings towards him, she is also struggling at home to
live with the strange family arrangement and someday find a way out.
Over the course of the summer, Deanna learns a lot about herself, her friends, and her family. By the time she returns to high
school as a junior, she has a much better understanding of who she is, and that nobody else can define her. Sara Zarr did a
wonderful job of creating Deanna, such a vulnerable character whose thoughts and actions are so believable. Never again
will I judge somebody from a story I once heard about them, after seeing Deanna's account of just how much that can hurt.
Category: Contemporary
Age Recommendation: Grades 9+
Release Date: 1/10/07
Publisher: Little, Brown
Reviewed by: Amber Gibson
Rating: 5 Stars
Have you ever done something that you wish you could take back? Something that changed your life forever?
We've all been there. We've all done something that we regret. Just like all of us, Deanna was once caught doing something
that she wasn't proud of. Unfortunately for her, it almost ruined her teen years. Just one dumb relationship, sprinkled with
naiveté and trust, and suddenly Deanna finds herself with the vulgar label of the school whore. It wasn't what she'd asked
for; she'd only ever been with one guy. But the stories just won't stop. Like a horrible rerun of a hated sitcom, it seems like
everywhere she turns, Deanna is confronted with what she did one night in a boy's car--and the fact that her father caught
her doing it.
Deanna's story is touching, and the worst example of how one event can seem to define a person's life. But like the fighter
she is, Deanna tries to move on and just live her life as normally as possible, with her two best friends and her family. But her
family life isn't exactly picturesque. Her older brother, his wife Stacy, and their baby daughter are living in the basement. Her
father is always arguing with Stacy, and Deanna thinks that he hates Stacy almost as much as he hates her since that fateful
night when Deanna's life fell apart. Her mother loves her and tries so hard to give Deanna the care that she needs, but
somehow it doesn't quite make up for the fact that their family is just barely scraping by. On top of all that, Deanna doesn't
know if she'll ever make it out of Pacifica, a little dump of a town in the otherwise glamorous state of California.
After sophomore year is over, Deanna is stuck at home all summer. To get out of the house and keep her busy, she gets her
first job at a little local pizza parlor. There, she discovers that the same boy who came so close ruining her life three years
earlier is now her co-worker. While she struggles to understand her feelings towards him, she is also struggling at home to
live with the strange family arrangement and someday find a way out.
Over the course of the summer, Deanna learns a lot about herself, her friends, and her family. By the time she returns to high
school as a junior, she has a much better understanding of who she is, and that nobody else can define her. Sara Zarr did a
wonderful job of creating Deanna, such a vulnerable character whose thoughts and actions are so believable. Never again
will I judge somebody from a story I once heard about them, after seeing Deanna's account of just how much that can hurt.