How to Save a Life
By Kate Pavao,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Tender tale of pregnant teen celebrates hope after loss.
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What's the Story?
When pregnant teen Mandy arrives to live with the family adopting her baby, she is leaving behind a mean mother and her mother's sexually abusive boyfriend. She narrates the story with Jill, who will be the baby's sister; Jill's own father died in a car accident, and she worries that her grieving mother hasn't quite thought through the adoption, which is being done without lawyers or a contract. When the mother meets Mandy, she is suspicious of the strange girl, and even hires a friend to investigate her. But as she learns more about Mandy's troubled past, she begins to realize that her boyfriend's observation is true: \"She may be giving up the baby so it has a mother, but she kind of needs one herself.\"
Is It Any Good?
The two very different protagonists allow readers to get in deep with the complicated emotions of these people in pain. Zarr creates some truly tender moments that will stay with teens long after they read this book, such as when Jill's mother tells Mandy the she will love her baby even if Mandy's mother's boyfriend turns out to be the father ("'Either way, this little girl is innocent, and I'm going to love her with all my heart.' Her whisper is fierce.") Some of the plot lines will be more interesting to readers than others -- the thread about Jill hiring her friend to investigate Mandy falls pretty flat -- but overall readers will relate to the protagonists and applaud their ultimate decision to support each other and believe in hope.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk books and movies depicting teen pregnancy. How does this novel compare with other books that you've read about the subject? Is it more or less realistic? Are stories like this one more likely to normalize teen parenthood -- or help families think and talk about a difficult subject?
What do you think of the book's title? Whose life is the author talking about? What does she believe is the secret to saving a life?
Book Details
- Author: Sara Zarr
- Genre: Coming of Age
- Book type: Fiction
- Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
- Publication date: October 18, 2011
- Publisher's recommended age(s): 12 - 12
- Number of pages: 352
- Last updated: July 12, 2017
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