Parents need to know that there is lots of teen drinking, "shagging" references (British term for sex), and in-school bullying incidents, including one that results in a girl having her hair cut by the bullies. There are also issues with anorexia (one girl encourages another to access a pro-anorexia Web site) and parent/child fights. Swearing is mostly in Web language, such as "WTF."
Positive messages:Some bad behavior including teenage tantrums. A girl threatens to run away. One girl is revealed to be an anorexic and steers a friend to a Web site celebrating and glamorizing the disease. But overall there are examples of parental guidance and attempts to settle errant behavior.
Violence:Some pretty serious bullying in which a girl is beaten up by several girls -- she even has her hair cut in one brawl.
Sex:While the sexual interactions aren't graphic, talk of kissing and "shagging" is prevalent throughout the book. There is also a lesbian teen character.
Language:Some swearing, but most of it is written in a way that readers would need to know the Web language equivalent -- "WTF" for "what the f--k. "Other swear words are spelled incorrectly, again according to online and instant message language. Swearing and name-calling are peppered throughout the book, but it isn't excessive.
Consumerism:Mention of some alcohol brands and online social networking sites.
Drinking, drugs, & smoking:Frequent teen drinking with several incidents in which teens get drunk and do things they later regret.
Our ratings and reviews are informed by child development guidelines. Learn more.
At first, it was very interesting...But as you get deeper into the book it gets pointless and kind of hard to understand and I it made me regret reading the book. But there are some interesting parts in the story.
I am a High School Senior, I am currently reading Serafina in my Senior English class but read the book when I was like 15. I think it relates to us kids. Not me personally but most if not all my friends.
This was a great read for me. I understood it because it targeted kids, and how we behave and act. It is a good time for parents to talk to children about sex drugs and alchohol.. It sends the positive message of "Be careful what you put online, because you never know who is reading." This is also a good book for those always on sites like "Memebase" "Facebook" "Deviantart" "4chan" and "MySpace