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Such a Pretty Girl (Paperback)

by Laura Wiess (Author)

4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)

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Product Details

Paperback: 212 pages
Publisher: MTV; 1 edition (Jan 2 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1416521836
ISBN-13: 978-1416521839
Product Dimensions: 17.3 x 13 x 1.8 cm
Shipping Weight: 137 g

Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)

Amazon.ca Sales Rank: #106,672 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)
Popular in this category:
#16 in Books > Teens > Social Issues > Sexual Abuse

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Product Description

From Booklist

With her father imprisoned, 15-year-old Meredith thinks she could live out her high-school days safely, but when he is released early for good behavior, her security is shattered. A popular youth baseball coach, her father has abused Mer as well as other boys and girls. With strict orders that he not be left alone with his daughter, he is returned to the condo complex where she and her mother live. In contrast to Mer's terror, her mother is giddy with delight at his return, and together the reunited couple plans to conceive another child. Yet in the shadows and stillness, Mer's nightmare begins anew. This is a gritty, terrifying novel about a father's abuse of power and trust, and the way two different teens, Meredith and her paraplegic friend, Andy, deal with that reality. Although not explicit, the novel is honest in its telling. Admittedly sensational, Wiess' story is a page-turner that ultimately sends a startling message of empowerment that, while improbable, is extremely satisfying. Frances Bradburn
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

"Such a Pretty Girl is deep and ravishing, dark and true. In the character of Meredith, Laura Wiess has created a girl to walk alongside Harper Lee's Scout and J. D. Salinger's Phoebe. Read this novel, and you will be changed forever."

-- Luanne Rice, New York Times bestselling author

"Such a Pretty Girl hooked me on page one and Laura Wiess's masterful prose kept me turning the pages. This is the first book in a very long time that made me say, 'Wish I'd written this.'"

-- Ellen Hopkins, bestselling author of Crank

"Beautifully written and painfully real. Laura Wiess has crafted a gripping story that is heart-rending -- and important, with a capital 'I'."

-- Barbara Delinsky, New York Times bestselling author of Flirting with Pete

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Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover

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Customer Reviews

3 Reviews

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4.0 out of 5 stars (3 customer reviews)

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3.0 out of 5 stars DADDY'S LITTLE GIRL..., Aug 23 2008

By	Lawyeraau (Balmoral Castle) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)

This book deals with a young prepubescent girl's ordeal. Raped by her father, who has also diddled with other children in his care and custody, Meredith speaks out about her family's little dirty secret, against her mother's wishes. Consequently, her father is arrested, tried, convicted, and sent to prison. After only three years in prison, rather than the nine Meredith had been led to believe he would get, he is released.

The mother, besotted with her husband, and blind to her child's pain and the enormity of the crime that daddy dearest has committed against his flesh and blood, does nothing to help Meredith. Instead, she speaks inanely about their being a family again, disregarding her daughter's pain and suffering over such a concept. Meredith, now an older and wiser fifteen year old, has her own coping mechanisms that help her deal with both her mother and father's complete betrayal.

Moreover, since the mother is a total enabler, she gets him an apartment in the complex in which she and Meredith live and proceeds to invite him into their home in complete disregard of a court's directive. She does this despite the fact that one of the original arresting officers just happens to live in the complex, as well, and is well-aware of what is going on. This is where the story begins to fall apart, as the author's understanding of law enforcement and the criminal justice system with regards to pedophiles seems off the mark.

While this is an intriguing book with its up close and personal look at incest and pedophilia, it is flawed. Some of the book rings true, while some of it rings quite hollow. Consequently, there were parts that I liked and parts that I did not at all like. Overall, however, I found the writing style to be less than satisfactory, with characters that are too one dimensional and dialogue that seems forced and stilted. Still, the author is able to convey a sense of the damage that incest and sexual abuse does to a young person's psyche. For this alone, the author deserves some kudos. Unfortunately, it is not sufficient to overcome the problems that plague this book.

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4.0 out of 5 stars Ring of truth, Sep 22 2007

By	Caroline Dunbar - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Child molestation as subject matter is rife with implied seediness, and difficult to write about without sinking into maudlin text if not outright sensationalism. Laura Wiess enters this territory and in 212 tightly woven pages conveys the horror without becoming overtly graphic or otherwise slick. This is a particularly sad tale, since the betrayal between father and daughter rings bitingly true. The reader anguishes along with Meredith who struggles between understandable hatred and yet poignantly recalls happier days before her father made his first move. Weiss explores the delicate balance between love and hate that is the central element in this story. It only falls short of five stars because the ending is a bit too satisfactory; in real life too often the scenario ends less smoothly. Offenders fall through the cracks and reoffend with victims too victimized to become heroic. All the same, a worthwhile and highly recommended read.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Courtesy of Teens Read Too, Aug 25 2007

By	TeensReadToo.com "Eat. Drink. Read. Be Merrier." (All Over the US & Canada) - See all my reviews

In SUCH A PRETTY GIRL, Laura Wiess grabbed and held my attention from the first page to the last. New Jersey teenager Meredith was supposed to have nine years of safety from her father, so she'd be eighteen and out of the house when he was released from prison. But three years later, when Meredith is fifteen, her father gets out for good behavior. No matter what he did to Meredith and to other children before her, Meredith's mother is more than ready to take him back.

Meredith isn't alone, though. She has her grandmother, the mayor of the town, who wants Meredith to move in with her to escape her father. She has Andy, her best friend, the guy she is in love with, who was also scarred by Meredith's father as a child. She has Andy's mother, who moved across the street from Meredith's family just to keep other children from the horror from which she couldn't protect Andy. She has Nigel, a retired policemen who has a plan to get Meredith's father back in jail and away from children. Even though Meredith is far from alone, she still feels that way when she can't even count on the people every kid is supposed to be able to count on: her parents.

Meredith wants to get her father back in prison. She wants her mother to go back to visiting him instead of having him in their house. She wants to be able to go into her own home without fear. She wants other kids to be safe, too. She doesn't know what that's going to take, and she's certainly not unafraid, but she isn't going to let him hurt her, or any other kids, again.

This moving, powerful novel is one that should not be missed. Once you start reading it, you won't be able to put this book down. I wasn't! It's an emotional book that is beautifully, powerfully written and unique, and it'll stay with you long past the last word.

Laura Wiess's characters are as well-written as the rest of the book, very realistic (in some cases, scarily so). They're three-dimensional characters in an equally (and, again, scarily) believable story that will certainly be a favorite of anyone who reads it. I know it's one of mine now! Don't miss this book.

Reviewed by: Jocelyn Pearce

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