titanic's review against another edition
5.0
i loved jaqueline wilson’s writing as a child and i’m so happy i still enjoy it as an adult :-)
lena09's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
giulsparola's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
milliepea's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.0
beaingleby's review against another edition
3.0
I have mixed feelings on this book. I was a compulsive reader of Jacqueline Wilson as a child and read every single one of her books, even having to be ‘banned’ from reading them as it was starting to define my taste in books.
Laura is a fourteen-year-old girl growing up in the 60’s . She goes to a Grammar School on a scholarship and lives in a poor area of town with parents who work long hours in working-class jobs. She develops a friendship with a wealthy classmate, Nina, whose parents are both doctors. She develops a crush on Nina’s older brother Daniel and also develops an affection for Nina’s much younger brother, Richard who she has a real care for. Laura is an only child and longs to be a part of Nina’s family, envying her wealth, highly educated parents and strong sibling bonds. Nina and Laura transition into teenage-hood together, becoming interested in boys. Nina is more mature than Laura and, under Nina’s influence, the two girls spend time at the local Lido, swimming and flirting with older boys. The girls meet two French boys, who are seventeen and about to go to university. Nina and Laura lie about their ages and one of the boys walks Laura home and coerces her into having sex with him, without her fully realising what has happened or fully understanding what sex even is. Laura then falls pregnant with his child and hides her pregnancy for as long as she can. When her parents eventually find out, she is shamed and coldly sent away to a mother and baby home for pregnant young girls where she transitions into the role of a teenage mother.
As an adult reader, I found the development of the characters and the friendships between the girls masterfully done. You really warm towards the girls and Laura is such a likeable and well developed character that I developed a real empathy for her. Laura’s narrative viewpoint as a young and innocent girl is so well-crafted that you can palpably feel things from her perspective. I also felt the coverage of trauma in Laura’s pregnancy was well-presented and was a realistic and heart-wrenching portrayal of the trauma of unexpected pregnancy.
The issue I have with the book is that the subject matter is just so awful. Laura is sexually assaulted and (in my opinion) raped by Leon and is so cruelly shunned by her parents when she barely knew what sex was to begin with. I feel like, whilst teenage motherhood is an important subject, if Laura had been a bit older (16/17 perhaps) then it would have been more palatable and less shockingly disturbing. 14 year olds becoming pregnant is less common and makes the reader more outraged than sympathetic whilst 16/17 year olds having babies is comparatively more common and something that can be made to work, despite immense difficulties. The reaction of Laura’s parents was perhaps typical of the 60’s but I was so so angry on her behalf that she was cast out by them so cruelly when they had previously seemed to dote on her so much.
Another reservation I had is that, whilst I was delighted at how things turned out for Laura, the ending seemed to be wrapped up a bit too neatly and was too idealistic, not really casting light on the difficulties teenage motherhood would have had for Laura in all of its complexities and how these challenges would go on beyond the initial stages. I felt the book had some missed opportunities and would have preferred for it to give more coverage to Laura navigating teenage motherhood beyond the first few weeks and how she dealt with continuing her education, socialising and developing friendships throughout her transition into adulthood whilst also being a mother.
On a more positive note, I really liked the coverage at the end on the topics of Adoption and Sexual Consent. I loved how, instead of just a generic note on these pivotal issues, there was a breaking down of how and where Laura’s narrative covered these issues.
Laura is a fourteen-year-old girl growing up in the 60’s . She goes to a Grammar School on a scholarship and lives in a poor area of town with parents who work long hours in working-class jobs. She develops a friendship with a wealthy classmate, Nina, whose parents are both doctors. She develops a crush on Nina’s older brother Daniel and also develops an affection for Nina’s much younger brother, Richard who she has a real care for. Laura is an only child and longs to be a part of Nina’s family, envying her wealth, highly educated parents and strong sibling bonds. Nina and Laura transition into teenage-hood together, becoming interested in boys. Nina is more mature than Laura and, under Nina’s influence, the two girls spend time at the local Lido, swimming and flirting with older boys. The girls meet two French boys, who are seventeen and about to go to university. Nina and Laura lie about their ages and one of the boys walks Laura home and coerces her into having sex with him, without her fully realising what has happened or fully understanding what sex even is. Laura then falls pregnant with his child and hides her pregnancy for as long as she can. When her parents eventually find out, she is shamed and coldly sent away to a mother and baby home for pregnant young girls where she transitions into the role of a teenage mother.
As an adult reader, I found the development of the characters and the friendships between the girls masterfully done. You really warm towards the girls and Laura is such a likeable and well developed character that I developed a real empathy for her. Laura’s narrative viewpoint as a young and innocent girl is so well-crafted that you can palpably feel things from her perspective. I also felt the coverage of trauma in Laura’s pregnancy was well-presented and was a realistic and heart-wrenching portrayal of the trauma of unexpected pregnancy.
The issue I have with the book is that the subject matter is just so awful. Laura is sexually assaulted and (in my opinion) raped by Leon and is so cruelly shunned by her parents when she barely knew what sex was to begin with. I feel like, whilst teenage motherhood is an important subject, if Laura had been a bit older (16/17 perhaps) then it would have been more palatable and less shockingly disturbing. 14 year olds becoming pregnant is less common and makes the reader more outraged than sympathetic whilst 16/17 year olds having babies is comparatively more common and something that can be made to work, despite immense difficulties. The reaction of Laura’s parents was perhaps typical of the 60’s but I was so so angry on her behalf that she was cast out by them so cruelly when they had previously seemed to dote on her so much.
Another reservation I had is that, whilst I was delighted at how things turned out for Laura, the ending seemed to be wrapped up a bit too neatly and was too idealistic, not really casting light on the difficulties teenage motherhood would have had for Laura in all of its complexities and how these challenges would go on beyond the initial stages. I felt the book had some missed opportunities and would have preferred for it to give more coverage to Laura navigating teenage motherhood beyond the first few weeks and how she dealt with continuing her education, socialising and developing friendships throughout her transition into adulthood whilst also being a mother.
On a more positive note, I really liked the coverage at the end on the topics of Adoption and Sexual Consent. I loved how, instead of just a generic note on these pivotal issues, there was a breaking down of how and where Laura’s narrative covered these issues.
mysticmegs's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this one, and it was so sad to think about how this is how young girls who’d gotten pregnant were actually treated in the 60s. I think compared to most of the book, the ending was a very typically JW happy ending, although I’m glad Laura was happy it probably wasn’t too realistic. I did enjoy the book all the same, and I’m glad I read it!!
jrs_55's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault
catherinecabbage's review against another edition
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
kiraa's review against another edition
DNF
Read quite young despite being young adult and so wasnt that into it.
Read quite young despite being young adult and so wasnt that into it.