Two or Three Things I Forgot to Tell You (276 Pages)

Here is another Joyce Carol Oates YA novel. For those who haven't read any of her other books, you may want to add some of them to your classroom libraries. Big Mouth and Ugly Girl was one of my favorites. In this book, Oates focuses on a high school senior, a girl who seems to have everything going for her : top student, early admission to Brown, part of "the in crowd," etc.  Then one of her best friends commits suicide, and everything begins to unravel. Marissa begins cutting. The thing I like about this book is that the reader begins to see the psychological twisting that seems to go along with cutting. Her behavior is a red flag, one that should be noticed and dealt with by her friends, family and teachers! Maybe some of our current students might learn from reading this and act to help a friend. The impact of their friend's suicide impacts all of the girls in the group. And as often happens in schools, rumors fly, then the rumors turn into cyber bullying, and everything is magnified. Some of the themes include friendship and standing up for what is right. I'm sure there are more because Oates is such a great story teller.