The Geography of Girlhood

Kirsten Smith
Little, Brown Young Readers (2007)
ISBN 9780316017350 
Reviewed by Sondra Fowler for Reader Views (4/07)

The “Geography of Girlhood” chronicles the woes and ways of Penny, a girl we follow in verse through ages 14 to about 16.  Penny has a wayward older sister who is hell bent on taking every bad path she can find, a dysfunctional and I believe dead mother, and a father who is trying to cope with an angst-ridden teen and the wayward older daughter on his own.  Penny’s father eventually marries and brings a new wife and step-brother into the mix.  In the end Penny grows a bit and discovers her step-brother isn’t so bad; her life is her life and she needs to accept it.

I can’t really say I identified with this novel – I despise teen angst.  I didn’t like it when I was surrounded by it as a teen.  My own 14-year-old daughter read this book before I did. She said that she didn’t get it.  I think you had to have had a stormy girlhood or a dramatic nature to get most of this.  I am sorry I cannot give this a better review – I am ill equipped.  The writing itself was lovely and vivid and engaging.  I think it is a grand idea.  But just as every person is different, there are many maps of life to follow.  This just wasn’t mine.

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