A review by bethhthelibrarian
A Shot at Normal by Marisa Reichardt
4.0
Juniper Jade has lived with her parent's decisions her whole life. She is homeschooled in the kitchen of her home, she only eats organic material, she does not watch TV or have a phone. She is not your typical sixteen-year-old girl. And she has never gotten a vaccination.
This doesn't bother her until she gets the measles and unknowingly spreads it to her younger siblings and a (TRIGGER WARNING) four-week-old infant who dies. Juniper then decides she needs to take her life and her body into her own hands and begins the fight for her right to be vaccinated.
This book was awesome. I love books that encourage our teens to change the world and fight for what they believe in. I empathized with Juniper's struggle, and cannot imagine what she felt when she learned that her lack of vaccinations is what caused a baby to die. Her attempt to argue with her parents was valid, and she truly did what she felt she had to do to protect herself and others. This book is timely, especially given our current social climate.
There were a few problems I had with the book. Her parents did seem rather one-dimensional and were the stereotypical hippie-dippie people who homeschool their kids. The book also seemed rather preachy at times. But overall, I think it's a great book for any teen who is interested in learning about law and how a teen can change the world. I did also really like how June still loved her family, despite disagreeing with them. I think that was really well done.
Content: There is some kissing, and some very mild language. There is also the death of an infant.
This doesn't bother her until she gets the measles and unknowingly spreads it to her younger siblings and a (TRIGGER WARNING) four-week-old infant who dies. Juniper then decides she needs to take her life and her body into her own hands and begins the fight for her right to be vaccinated.
This book was awesome. I love books that encourage our teens to change the world and fight for what they believe in. I empathized with Juniper's struggle, and cannot imagine what she felt when she learned that her lack of vaccinations is what caused a baby to die. Her attempt to argue with her parents was valid, and she truly did what she felt she had to do to protect herself and others. This book is timely, especially given our current social climate.
There were a few problems I had with the book. Her parents did seem rather one-dimensional and were the stereotypical hippie-dippie people who homeschool their kids. The book also seemed rather preachy at times. But overall, I think it's a great book for any teen who is interested in learning about law and how a teen can change the world. I did also really like how June still loved her family, despite disagreeing with them. I think that was really well done.
Content: There is some kissing, and some very mild language. There is also the death of an infant.