Helpful Score: 5
I read Stargirl because I thought it was about a homeschooled girl and the transition to being in a school. It is that, but it is much more.
It is about being yourself, yet trying to fit in. It is about not caring what others think about you, yet wanting to have friends. It is about school being about more than what is taught by the teachers in the classrooms. It is about life being about more than school and work.
The fact that Stargirl was homeschooled before attending Mica Area High School is somewhat incidental. She could have almost as easily been from another part of the country, or even a different country. It is a way for the author to emphasize that she was not entrenched in "how school works" and the social aspects surrounding school, cliques, and school activities. Having Stargirl be a former homeschooler emphasizes that she is comfortable in her individuality.
This is a great book for anyone interested in viewing teen life through the perspective of a kind, naive, outsider. If you ever felt like the "odd one" in school, this will resonate with you.
It is about being yourself, yet trying to fit in. It is about not caring what others think about you, yet wanting to have friends. It is about school being about more than what is taught by the teachers in the classrooms. It is about life being about more than school and work.
The fact that Stargirl was homeschooled before attending Mica Area High School is somewhat incidental. She could have almost as easily been from another part of the country, or even a different country. It is a way for the author to emphasize that she was not entrenched in "how school works" and the social aspects surrounding school, cliques, and school activities. Having Stargirl be a former homeschooler emphasizes that she is comfortable in her individuality.
This is a great book for anyone interested in viewing teen life through the perspective of a kind, naive, outsider. If you ever felt like the "odd one" in school, this will resonate with you.
Helpful Score: 3
At Mica High School in Mica, Arizona, things are quiet and uneventful. Everyone dresses alike. Everyone thinks alike. No one does anything that their neighbor wouldn't do.
Until Stargirl comes along.
Homeschooled for years, Stargirl defies categorization. She wears long, flowing pioneer dresses daily, intermingled with outrageous costumes. She serenades people with her ukulele at lunch on their birthdays. She brings her pet rat Cinnamon to school. She looks strangers in the eye. She dances to no music and seems to understand something about life that her classmates do not. Mica students aren't sure what to do with her, and she goes from being interesting to admired to shunned and finally ostracized.
Leo Borlock was perfectly happy with his generic Mica life. Then, against his will, he finds himself falling for Stargirl. The two share an incredible, eye-opening romance. In their own little world, everything is perfect and magical. But when they have to face their critical classmates, what will happen to their relationship?
This is by far Jerry Spinelli's best novel. It is a beautifully written story about nonconformity and the seeds of magic and quirkiness that we all possess, though we may not realize it. Readers will wish that they were friends with Stargirl. I was unsatisfied with the ending, but I understand why Spinelli would have ended the novel in that way. There is nothing I would change about this extremely touching and timeless story. I recommend this to everyone, regardless of their age.
Until Stargirl comes along.
Homeschooled for years, Stargirl defies categorization. She wears long, flowing pioneer dresses daily, intermingled with outrageous costumes. She serenades people with her ukulele at lunch on their birthdays. She brings her pet rat Cinnamon to school. She looks strangers in the eye. She dances to no music and seems to understand something about life that her classmates do not. Mica students aren't sure what to do with her, and she goes from being interesting to admired to shunned and finally ostracized.
Leo Borlock was perfectly happy with his generic Mica life. Then, against his will, he finds himself falling for Stargirl. The two share an incredible, eye-opening romance. In their own little world, everything is perfect and magical. But when they have to face their critical classmates, what will happen to their relationship?
This is by far Jerry Spinelli's best novel. It is a beautifully written story about nonconformity and the seeds of magic and quirkiness that we all possess, though we may not realize it. Readers will wish that they were friends with Stargirl. I was unsatisfied with the ending, but I understand why Spinelli would have ended the novel in that way. There is nothing I would change about this extremely touching and timeless story. I recommend this to everyone, regardless of their age.
Helpful Score: 2
This is a great book that any teen can relate to. It is funny in the great Spinelli style with the humor more geared towards teens. Every student that I recommend this book to loves it and asks if I will loan it to one of their friends. (Even if the friend is not in my class!)
Helpful Score: 2
A wonderful, touching story for any adolescant boy or girl. Very insightful into today's young adult's thought processes.
Helpful Score: 2
She was elusive. She was today. She was tomorrow. She was the faintest scent of a cactus flower, the flitting shadow of an elf owl. We did not know what to make of her. In our minds we tried to pin her to corkboard like a butterfly, but the pin merely went through and away she flew.
This book is delight for everyone who has ever been sixteen (or anyone working on getting there). By far, my favorite of Spinelli's work, and I LOVE Spinelli.
This book is delight for everyone who has ever been sixteen (or anyone working on getting there). By far, my favorite of Spinelli's work, and I LOVE Spinelli.
