Parents' Guide to

After the Wreck, I Picked Myself Up, Spread My Wings, and Flew Away

By Terreece Clarke, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 15+

Raw look at loss & addiction best for older teens.

Book Joyce Carol Oates Contemporary Fiction 2006
After the Wreck, I Picked Myself Up, Spread My Wings, and Flew Away Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this book.

Community Reviews

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age 15+

Based on 2 parent reviews

andrewsgirl
andrewsgirl Adult
December 6, 2010
age 16+
this book is a very good book i had just picked it for a project and i would like to say that this book is good for kids who have abused drugs to take away pain or someone that has lost a parent and has issues or withdraws from drugs. This book also has alot to do with drugs and violence and sexually content. I had seen my dad uzse drugs and i never had done anything because i have seen my dad go threw it and this book has supported me in so many ways

This title has:

Too much violence
Too much sex
Too much swearing
Too much consumerism
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
Educational value
lovinlife123
lovinlife123 Adult
May 2, 2010
age 13+
It was greta and contained a great message. For some younger teens it may not be apprpiate but the majority are reading much worse stuff and are mature enough to get the lesson out of this book. And compared to what we see everyday it was not grapic at all. Plus at any regular high school there are drugs and drinking, not that every kid is involved but they know all about it. Plus the majority off book swe read contain worse things about love and stuff and very bad messages. this is from a teenagers point of view by the way. This book had a intense topic but the rest was less than normal. No one gets what we get faced with evry day sooo. And it was an incrdibly well written book.

This title has:

Great messages
See all 2 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Once popular, athletic, and "normal," Jenna Abbott isn't the same after a near-fatal car crash. Now she feels totally alone and sickly and fights to forget the accident in a number of self-destructive ways. Two friends come into her life, one who can help her recover and another who offers even more dangerous forms of self-punishment.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (2 ):
Kids say (2 ):

Joyce Carol Oates finds a way to reach inside the soul of a teen and bring out every painful, joyful, and confused feeling, laying them out for readers to digest. Jenna Abbott is in a horrible car crash with her mother. After the crash, she is a completely different person and finds herself trying hard to cope and forget everything that happened.

Oates takes readers "into the blue" -- the drug-induced haze Jenna finds herself in after the crash -- and then pushes us "into the raw" -- real life, up close without drugs as Jenna experiences it. It's a heartbreaking, painful, encouraging, and ultimately beautifully crafted story of loss and recovery.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about any of the biggie topics presented here: dealing with the loss of a loved one, the dangers of prescription medication, dangerous friends, rape, and recovery. In what ways did Jenna punish herself for her mother's death? What do you know about the dangers of prescription medicine abuse? What deaths in the news can be attributed to prescription medicines?

Book Details

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