Stargirl

Jerry Spinelli, //Stargirl,// Reviewed by Lindsey B.   Knopf, 2000, 186 pages. ** Synopsis:   ** // Stargirl // takes place at Mica High School in Arizona. The protagonist, Leo Borlock, and his best friend, Kevin, work at the school’s TV station. Their lives are changed when they meet free-spirited Stargirl. Stargirl dresses differently than the other girls, preferring long dresses and costumes. She also acts differently, singing to other kids in the lunchroom, and playing with her pet rat, Cinnamon. Initially, the school embraces her differences, intrigued by her. She is asked to join the cheerleading quad, but loses popularity, and her place on the squad, after she cheers for the opposing team at a high-stakes basketball game. Just as Stargirl loses her popularity at school, she and Leo enter into a romantic relationship. Leo is drawn to her enthusiasm for life and her consideration of others. Stargirl also shows Leo how to lose “lose awareness of [him]self” and simply exist at peace in the world (124). With the school turned against Stargirl, Leo is shunned by his classmates for the first time in his life. The mentor for many of the kids,, Archie, challenges Leo to think about what is more important to him, being loved by Stargirl, or by everyone else. Leo spends the rest of the novel reconciling his desire to be with Stargirl with his desire to fit in at school. ** Evaluation:   ** The major strength of this book is its ability to show Leo’s struggle to define himself as an individual while he also struggles to fit in at school. Leo’s descriptions of his isolation and how the students stare and talk about him give adolescents an emotional connection to the novel. Spinelli juxtaposes the free-spirited Stargirl against the self-aware Leo to illustrate the internal struggle that defines the adolescent experience. This story also contains great descriptions of the Arizona landscape, with its “porcupiny yucca, the beaver tail and prickly yucca,” which, with the help of Stargirl, Leo begins to notice and appreciate (116). In //Stargirl,// Spinelli shows a group of adolescents struggling to form their personal identities and beliefs. While Stargirl chooses to focus on others and, overall, not let opinions of others have an effect on her, two other characters, Hillari Kimble and Wayne Parr are very concerned with self and how they are perceived. When Leo begins dating Stargirl, Kevin is faced with an identity-forming dilemma. Should he talk to his friend even though he is associating with an unpopular person? Through the use of Archie, Spinelli shows that a good mentor helps adolescents make and feel confident in decisions they have made. Overall, Spinelli shows the many different struggles adolescents experience within themselves and society. I would highly recommend this book to middle school girls and boys. Because the students are in high school in the book, it could also appeal to some high school students. The book’s plot definitely speaks to the internal conflict student’s experience during adolescence. In addition, it conveys a powerful message: don’t be afraid to be yourself.
 * Author’s View of Adolescents and Society: **
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