Addie on the Inside

Gr 6—8—This companion to The Misfits (2001) and Totally Joe (2005, both S & S) focuses on Addie Carle, an outspoken, intelligent girl who is worried about injustice and "how in the world, the world will ever be okay." She always speaks her mind, which doesn't endear her to her fellow classmates and leads to gossip and ridicule. She is an earnest protagonist who doesn't see any other way to be. But seventh grade is becoming a turning point in her life. Her first boyfriend likes her for who she is but is eventually overwhelmed by her; a childhood friend returns and is now part of the popular group; she realizes that adults also have inner lives and emotions; and she loses a beloved pet. She wonders if she should pay more attention to what she wears or says, but questions whether wearing the "in" shoes would really change anything. Then when Addie participates in the National Day of Silence in support of GLBT teens, she begins to notice the students who are always silent ("while I talk and talk and the loud ones shout and shove") and is surprised when she discovers that she can be quiet for a change. And she finds support from a surprising source. Howe completely captures what it is like to be a 13-year-old girl—the ups and downs, the emotional tightrope, the push/pull between childhood and growing up, and the power of gossip and school cliques. Addie negotiates the corridors of middle school with thoughtful determination; she's a young woman with a lot to say. Add this fine novel to the growing list of novels in verse.—Terrie Dorio, Santa Monica Public Library, CA