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FindingJane
Aug 09, 2015FindingJane rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Set firmly in today’s world of internet (dis)connection, this novel aptly explores the mayhem, madness, hysteria and social wreckage that ensue when anyone can post pictures, commentary and scathing opinions mere seconds after an event occurs. With little or no forethought or consideration about what is seen, heard and videotaped, it’s easy for the ugliness of human nature to rear its head. The writing is crisp and edgy and doesn’t hold back—except in terms of its main character, Lucy Vacarro. Even when she’s being judgmental, she also seems, well, a bit too amiable. One would almost prefer that she be more like her older sister, the dazzling, vivacious, cutthroat Jayla Heart, a girl who (much like the character she plays on television) wouldn’t take this kind of verbal abuse lying down. Jayla doesn’t allow herself to be bullied or cowed by anyone—she’d tear a new one for each student who attacked her, blow off her fake, would-be friends and write a scathing letter on her Facebook page denouncing all the sanctimonious grudge-filled monsters who attacked her. Alas, Lucy is no Jayla and so this is a very different book. Lucy struggles mightily to keep her head above the tides but ultimately finds she can’t do it alone. What happens is that we witness her slowly burgeoning maturity as she puts aside former judgments and learns slowly who her real friends are, making allies in unexpected places and learning to forgive, even those who don’t ask for it. The novel throbs with pain, angst, humiliation, joy and energy. True love prevails but only at tremendous cost and effort—just as it should be. This novel is an insightful and riveting look at a topical subject and one that is of concern to many modern people. As YA novels go, it rises splendidly above its youthful underpinnings.