Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

This is a pre-teen to young adult novel. It delivers an important message about staying true to yourself instead of pretending to be someone that you are not, but my 11 year old seemed to miss it. I explained it to him, but he stood resolute in his own interpretation. Hopefully some of what I said will sink in one day though. ;) He does want to read the sequel (written from Stargirl's perspective rather than Leo's), so maybe that will help him understand that nonconformity is okay.

Leo is a typical teenager who attends the local High School. He has a best friend, Kevin. He is not overly popular, but he is not an outcast either. He is just an average kid. When Stargirl (real name Susan) starts attending the High School, after years of homeschooling, she causes a stir because of her uniqueness. She wears different clothing than the norm; she is kind to everyone; she sings Happy Birthday, while playing the ukulele, to each student in the cafeteria on their birthday. She also announces to Leo in public that she thinks he's cute. Leo likes Stargirl - and is certainly intrigued by her - but he has a difficult time with how different she is.

Stargirl briefly becomes accepted by her fellow classmates, mainly because she joins the cheerleading squad and people come to see her perform her "antics" during each game. Then, with an enthusiastic audience (thanks to Stargirl), their team starts winning. Of course all good things must come to an end. Stargirl not only cheered for her own team; she also cheered for the other teams. This does not sit well with anyone, so she is once again ostracized. Stargirl tries to become "normal" by dressing and acting like everyone else, which Leo really wants. This is not successful. She enters a public speaking competition - and wins first place - but no one shows up to congratulate her for her win except her best friend a couple of teachers.

Leo & Stargirl are a couple for awhile, but Leo cannot handle being "shunned" by the rest of the kids at their school. Leo actually chooses his friends over Stargirl and breaks up with her. He doesn't even take her to the school dance. Stargirl goes back to being true to herself, but her family moves after the school dance and Leo never sees her again. I was disappointed in Leo - caving to peer pressure and all. My son was disappointed in Stargirl because she stopped trying to be "normal". Goodness. That is NOT the message the book is trying to convey! This book is a great one to read with your pre-teen. It's a great way to talk about how it's okay to be "different" from everyone else.

Wendy's Rating: ****