OMG is all I can say about A. S. King's Printz Honor book Please Ignore Vera Dietz. I bought it to read on a trip to Madison, WI, and had finished it by the time the plane landed. I could not put this book down!!!
The story--told from different perspectives, including a pagoda (yes, a pagoda)--is mainly about the complex relationship between teenagers Vera and Charlie who have been friends since childhood. It is one of those relationships where if everything was right, they would admit they loved each other, date, and then get married and be happy. But as we know in life, and YA fiction, things aren't so simple.
First, Vera's mom left when she was 12, running off with her podiatrist (and before all that she was a stripper). Vera's dad is trying, but he can't let go.
Charlie lives next door and the physical and emotional abuse his father dishes out to his mother can be heard by Vera and her father (and others) but no one does anything to intervene. Then, there's the creepy thing with Charlie's underwear (I am not going to spoil the book and tell all!).
Fast forward: Charlie finds a new crowd, turns against Vera, and dies under some "questionable" circumstances. Vera begins to see and hear thousands of Charlies at odd times.
There is, of course, much more!
I loved the change in perspectives and the wonderful balance of humor, playfulness, sadness, and seriousness. And, the flow charts provide a very interesting dicussion and instructional tool for teachers :)
It seems that we are reading all the same books! I loved Vera Dietz so much and zoomed through it.
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