Dear Rachel Maddow by Adrienne Kisner
I love books told in an epistolary format, so when I realized that was the case with this one, I was excited to read it.
Brynn is a junior in high school. She used to care about school, but hasn't lately, so all her classes are in the lower level of the school, where the special ed kids are. Honestly, context clues told me she had a learning disability of some kind, but she used to be with the other kids and seems kinda bummed that she isn't anymore.
Brynn's older brother is dead, her dad left, her mom is married to a loser, her girlfriend broke up with her, and there are jerks at school implying that those not in honors classes are somehow less than. Suffice it to say, Brynn has a lot to deal with. So, when her English teacher has them email a famous person, she does. She even gets a response from Rachel Maddow, the celebrity she chose. Because she received a response, her teacher encouraged her to contact Ms. Maddow again. What results is a series of unsent emails to Rachel Maddow where Brynn works through her life's difficulties.
I liked this because it gave me an insight into the mind of a troubled teen. She's not so different than the ones sitting in my classroom day after day, and anything that helps me to empathize with them is a good thing.
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