Elizabeth M. (lizzymartinez) reviewed on 11/13/2010 + 5 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 1

Through a series of poems, the teenage narrator, Sophie, tells the story of her first experiences with love. Focusing on the universal experiences of adolescence, she discusses her relationships with family, friends, and boys as she struggles to reach adulthood. Sophie moves through her first relationships with the support of her childhood friends Grace and Rachel, who are also experiencing their new loves. The beginning section of the book describes the teen's intensely romantic relationship with her first love, Dylan. When Dylan asks her not to mention that she's Jewish to his prejudiced mother, Sophie is heartbroken. Her relationship with Dylan morphs into a friendship after she meets her second love, Chaz, in a chat room on the Internet. Sophie's cyber love is short lived and gives way to a more meaningful relationship with the unpopular and often bullied Robin Murphy. In addition to the stress of maintaining relationships with friends and boyfriends, Sophie struggles to understand and be understood by her mother, an overly emotional soap-opera addict. The distance that she feels from her family mirrors her feelings of isolation from the rest of society.

Sonya Sones created in Sophie an easily accessible character for young adolescents. Readers can identify with the issues the protagonist faces, as they are all universal experiences involving family, friendships, love, race, gender, class, and culture. Sones also writes in narrative poetry, which is easy and fun to read. This type of writing is especially accessible for reluctant readers. Unfortunately, the book lacks a male point of view. Readers only see the perspective of the female characters. This book needs to be supplemented with other material that provides a male perspective.

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