The Miseducation of Cameron Post

Book review by Mary Eisenhart, Common Sense Media
The Miseducation of Cameron Post Poster Image

Common Sense says

age 17+

Story of young Montana lesbian is best for mature teens.

Emily M. Danforth Coming of Age 2012
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Parents say

age 13+

Based on 4 reviews

Kids say

age 14+

Based on 18 reviews

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this book.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that while the publisher of The Miseducation of Cameron Post says that the book is OK for 14-year-olds, we suggest caution, depending on how ready you feel your kid is for a teen Montana girl's lesbian explorations in the early '90s and the resulting complications. Adult readers and mature teens will probably find the book's excellent writing and complex moral universe engaging and thought-provoking. But parents may find that a world in which casual sexual experimentation, drug use, theft, swearing, and hate speech are all more or less accepted behavior may be too much for younger young-adult readers to deal with.

Community Reviews

A.Mary
A.Mary Adult
March 30, 2020
age 13+

Disappointing Review by Common Sense- Powerful and Thought Provoking Book

Honestly, I'm very disappointed you Common Sense. Throughout my years of parenting, I have relied on your expert reviews to guide my kids' media consumption. But, this review was inaccurate. You rated twilight, a vey sexual mess that has the main love interest be an abuser as 13+. 13 reasons why, a book where a girl is graphically raped and commits graphic suicide as 14+. And Riverdale, a dark show where there is sex pretty much in every episode as 14+. I would much rather let my teens read this book than any of the above mentioned. Take it from me, a gen X christian mom, this book is good for teens to read. I was introduced to this book when my daughter, 15, wanted to read it. I was put off by the high age rating and the fact that the main character was gay. However after having many conversations with my daughter, I succumbed and bought a copy for myself to read first. The sexual content was nowhere near "explicit" with two or three short sentences at best. The rest focuses on her emotions, which I feel is important for teens to read about and understand. Teens in this book are not "encouraged to experiment" and there is a very strong message of staying true to yourself. This book is a very powerful statement that I feel is very important for teens (both gay and straight) to read today. All the characters are very real and multidimensional and the emotions are very raw and believable.

This title has:

Educational value
Great messages
Great role models
Kara J.
Kara J. Adult
July 2, 2017
age 13+

This title has:

Educational value
Great messages
See all 4 parent reviews

What's the Story?

It's 1989 in Fort Miles, MT, and 12-year-old Cameron Post has just kissed her best friend, Irene. She wants to do it again, too, which is just the beginning of a lot of emotional turmoil, particularly since her parents -- away for the weekend on a camping trip -- are killed in an auto accident and never return, and her first thought is that they'll never learn her shameful secret. Ever after, the secret and her parents' death seem inextricably connected. Over the next four years, Cameron pursues a passionate, guilt-ridden quest for identity (sexual and otherwise) that's both hindered and abetted by girls with whom she falls in love, the boys on the track team, her super-conservative Aunt Ruth -- who sends her to Christian re-education camp to \"cure\" her -- and the true friends she finds there.

Is It Any Good?

Cameron's friendship with Jane and Adam is one of the book's best features. Gender issues aside -- and they are, of course, prominent here -- this book will resonate a good deal with readers who appreciate the rewards of finding friends with whom you truly have something in common, especially if you've felt out of place for a long time.

Danforth also allows characters who could be simply villains to be far more nuanced -- as Cameron experiences the ill effects of their behavior, she also understands the motivations, some sincerely good, that are driving it. Telling her tale along the way, she gets a good deal more explicit with regard to sex, drugs, and drinking (from age 12) than parents may be comfortable with younger kids reading, and there's also a lot of foul language. But for mature readers, the book is brilliant.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how things have changed since 1993, when this book ends. For example, a few years later, the Internet came along, making it much easier for kids who feel disconnected to find each other. (Another biggie: cell phones.)

  • Do you think a 12-year-old gay kid would have as a hard a time in school today as Cameron had in 1989? Why or why not?

  • How do you think Cameron can tell the difference between the adults who truly have her best interests at heart and those who have their own agendas?

Book Details

Our Editors Recommend

For kids who love stories for teens

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