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A teenager struggles through physical loss to the start of acceptance in an absorbing, artful novel at once honest and insightful, wrenching and redemptive.
On a sunny day in June, at the beach with her mom and brother, fifteen-year-old Jane Arrowood went for a swim. And then everything — absolutely everything — changed. Now she’s counting down the days until she returns to school with her fake arm, where she knows kids will whisper, "That’s her — that’s Shark Girl," as she passes. In the meantime there are only questions: Why did this happen? Why her? What about her art? What about her life? In this striking first novel, Kelly Bingham uses poems, letters, telephone conversations, and newspaper clippings to look unflinchingly at what it’s like to lose part of yourself - and to summon the courage it takes to find yourself again.
Written in a series of poems, letters and journal entries, Bingham's debut novel strikes a delicate balance between shock story and emotive rant, and delivers a provocative portrait of one girl's journey following a near-fatal accident. Before the attack, 15-year-old Jane's life was filled with the trappings of any normal teenage girl: trips to the mall with her girlfriends, art projects, crushes on boys at school. But when she loses her arm to a shark over the summer, Jane's life (and perspective) changes forever. She can't draw like she used to, open cans or crack eggs for dinner, or button her own pants. Everyone at school whispers about her (the pity stare is debilitating), and she has reached the breaking point when it comes to condolence letters from strangers and interview requests from reporters. Jane must find a way to move beyond her wounds-both physical and psychological. Powerful without being maudlin or preachy, the book explores hurdles that are bound to follow a physical disfigurement, and readers will come to empathize with and respect Jane for her strength and brutal honesty. They'll also appreciate the slight (but realistic) lift at the story's conclusion. Ages 12-up. (May)
Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information| Price | Condition | Delivery | Seller | Action |
| $99.99 | Digital |
| WonderClub |
Lindsay Brown
reviewed Shark Girl on July 20, 2012
Shark Girl
The minute I saw this book I was hooked on its premise; I couldn't wait to read something that dealt with the aftermath of a shark attack. I didn't flip through the pages before I checked it out of the library, though, and as soon as I opened it I was disappointed to see that it was written largely in poems. I read it anyway, because I still wanted to know what happened. But this is the last book I will ever read in that format, because when most of your lines don't even cross the page, this stylistic "edge" seems to come at the expense of description. As a result, I ended up feeling that what could have been a rich, deep story instead barely skimmed the surface of events.
(side note: this is a slightly revised version of the review I originally posted to Amazon, where I got yelled at by two people - including the author - for missing the point. That was fun and did not at all shatter my confidence in trying to share honest opinions on books. So I guess I want to add that while I understand it takes the same amount of work to write a book in poem form, it is a choice I can't agree with because it makes it look less dedicated. It's kind of like drawing a realistic picture and then throwing paint on it to emulate a popular abstract artist. I do appreciate poetry as an art form, but some stories can be explored through lyrical writing while others need be told as straightforward plots with driving action. This was the latter.)
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