The Adoration of Jenna Fox, by Mary E. Pearson
Pearson, Mary E. (2008). The Adoration of Jenna Fox. New York: Henry Holt and Company, LLC. 266 pages.
Summary and Evaluation: Jenna Fox is a normal seventeen-year-old girl. At least she was before the horrible car accident that left her in a coma for over a year. Jenna doesn't remember anything at all from before the accident (or the accident itself). On the other hand, she can remember things she really shouldn’t be able to (like her own baptism) and has a nearly encyclopedic knowledge of history, for one. She convinces her mother to allow her to return to school and soon finds out the other handful of students at the charter school each have their reasons for being there instead of a "regular" school. Throughout the course of the novel, Jenna begins to remember bits and pieces of her life before the accident . . . and makes some startling discoveries about herself in the present.
This is definitely a work of science-fiction, but I rather liked the mystery aspect of the novel as well-the reader is getting clues at the same time Jenna is and both have to piece them together to figure out what's going on. Interspersed throughout the book are short poems, some of which seem to be from a state of not-quite-dreaming, others of which are Jenna's deepest thoughts. The book addresses topics related to biomedical ethics, including the big reveal (which I hadn't expected). The pacing is not that fast, but the plot is quite intriguing and kept me reading so I could find out what happened to Jenna. I hadn't read any books before The Adoration of Jenna Fox that had an amnesiac narrator and found the concept that she was more certain about the outside world than herself very interesting.
Booktalk Hook:I have the prepared booktalk I used for my panel presentation, which I could use if I were booktalking to a group or class. Otherwise, I think I would cover the same points in a less "formal" booktalk, using the amnesia plotline to "sell" the book.
Summary and Evaluation: Jenna Fox is a normal seventeen-year-old girl. At least she was before the horrible car accident that left her in a coma for over a year. Jenna doesn't remember anything at all from before the accident (or the accident itself). On the other hand, she can remember things she really shouldn’t be able to (like her own baptism) and has a nearly encyclopedic knowledge of history, for one. She convinces her mother to allow her to return to school and soon finds out the other handful of students at the charter school each have their reasons for being there instead of a "regular" school. Throughout the course of the novel, Jenna begins to remember bits and pieces of her life before the accident . . . and makes some startling discoveries about herself in the present.
This is definitely a work of science-fiction, but I rather liked the mystery aspect of the novel as well-the reader is getting clues at the same time Jenna is and both have to piece them together to figure out what's going on. Interspersed throughout the book are short poems, some of which seem to be from a state of not-quite-dreaming, others of which are Jenna's deepest thoughts. The book addresses topics related to biomedical ethics, including the big reveal (which I hadn't expected). The pacing is not that fast, but the plot is quite intriguing and kept me reading so I could find out what happened to Jenna. I hadn't read any books before The Adoration of Jenna Fox that had an amnesiac narrator and found the concept that she was more certain about the outside world than herself very interesting.
Booktalk Hook:I have the prepared booktalk I used for my panel presentation, which I could use if I were booktalking to a group or class. Otherwise, I think I would cover the same points in a less "formal" booktalk, using the amnesia plotline to "sell" the book.