Coping!

Two books that I read awhile ago have been rolling around in my head for some time now as, although very different on the surface, seemed to have a lot in common. Both are about young people who have come to a belief that they are unimportant in their family structure and have taken what appears to be quite extreme methods to allow themselves to cope.

Notes From a Liar and Her Dog by Gennifer Choldenko is Antonio’s story. Her sisters are the perfect ones in the family and in her parents’ eyes. Antonio, or Ant as she prefers to be called, resorts to a fantasy world where she pretends to believe she has been adopted and is just waiting for her real, loving mom to claim her. She also has fallen into the habit of lying about everything and of course, angering her mother each step of the way. Added to that is the fact that her dad never holds down a job in any one place for long, so they are always on the move and this time, she does not want to leave her best friend, Harrison, behind. Fortunately for Ant, a wise teacher takes an interest in her and is even able to give her mother a little help in understanding this daughter better. This is the author of the Newbery book, Al Capone Does My Shirts.

The other novel Cut, by Patricia McCormick is about Callie who blames herself for the fact that her treasured little brother is asthmatic and that he has a life-threatening attack when she is responsible for his care. Cutting herself, just a little at first and more as time goes on, helps to relieve a little of the pain she is feeling inside. Eventually, she ends up in a ward for children who are having emotional difficulties, where she withdraws even further into herself and refuses, or is unable, to speak. Again, a loving,patient counsellor, is able to help Callie and eventually her parents, to understand the torment Callie has been feeling through self-imposed guilt. Although Cut is definitely for grade 7 through high school, and Notes From a Liar and Her Dog, is probably more suitable for grade 6-9, both stories reminded me that our children are sometimes impacted in a far greater way than we might realize by some of the vagaries of their lives. I was reminded as I looked back on the raising of my own children, that these gentle souls need to be understood and accepted and reminded every day just how important they are.

Another excellent novel which would be most suitable for high school is The Perfect Cut by Julia Burtinshaw. It is another look at why some of our young people are resorting to this drastic measure to make some sense of their lives.