#47--What My Mother Doesn't Know

Bibliographic Information

What My Mother Doesn’t Know by Sonya Sones. Simon Pulse. 2001.

Price: $17.45 for hardcover; $7.99 for paperback

Pages: 259 for hardback and paperback

Plot Summary

Fifteen year old Sophie wants to find her true love. Her eighth grade boyfriend Lou certainly wasn’t it and she isn’t sure her current boyfriend, Dylan, is either. Although she gets along fabulously with her chat room friend Chaz she has doubts about him as well. Her best friends, Rachel and Grace, can’t help her figure it out as they are wrapped up with their own boy troubles. But Sophie can’t spend all her time concerned with her search as she spends plenty of time worrying about her parents’ rocky marriage, her budding breasts, and the hideous dress her mother picks out for her ninth grade Halloween dance.

Critical Evaluation

It’s easy to see why Sones’ What My Mother Doesn’t Know was picked by the ALA as a 2002 Top Ten Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers. Not only is it a fast read as it is written in verse but Sophie and her friends are funny and warm, exactly how everyone wants their best friends to be. Sones does an excellent job portraying the very real struggles of teenagers from the embarrassment of puberty and the emotional roller coaster of dating to fights with parents and ostracization from peers. A perfect blend of humor and realism, What My Mother Doesn’t Know is a great read.

Reader’s Annotation

Fifteen year old Sophie must go through a lot of relationships before she finds her true love all the while navigating the challenges of being a freshman in high school.

About the Author

Before Sonia Sones wrote verse novels for teenagers she worked as a professor, personal assistant, animator, script supervisor, film editor, and small business owner. Her latest novel is The Hunchback of Neiman Marcus, her first book written for adults.

To learn more about Sonia Sones visit her website here.

Genre

Coming of age, Realistic fiction

Readalikes

The Best and Hardest Thing by Pat Brisson

·         Also told in verse, this novel features a female protagonist who must decide what to do after she learns that she is pregnant.

The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot

·         A hilarious novel comprised of diary entries from a girl struggling to adjust to junior high and the fact that she is a princess of a small country.

What My Girlfriend Doesn’t Know by Sonia Sones

·         The sequel to What My Mother Doesn’t Know

Tags

Judaism, 9^th grade, puberty, bullying, verse novel, boyfriends, Boston, troubled marriage, absentee parents, mentally ill mother, workaholic father, dances, chat rooms, La Bal à Bougival, Renoir, drawing

Awards Won/Lists On

This book has received many accolades and awards including but not limited to:

2001 Booklist Editor’s Choice

2002 ALA Best Book for Young Adults

2002 ALA Top Ten Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers

2003 An International Reading Association Young Adults’ Choice winner

2003 VOYA Top Shelf for Middle School Readers

2005-06 Iowa Teen Book Award

It has been nominated for awards in Missouri, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Wyoming.

Information retrieved from: http://www.sonyasones.com/books/whatmymother/honors.html

Professional Reviews

 Booklist

Entertainment Weekly

Kirkus Reviews
 Publishers' Weekly

School Library Journal

VOYA

Booktalk Ideas

How do you know who your true love is?

·         A first love (Lou—2)

·         A passionate relationship (Dylan—3, 9, etc)

·         Online soulmates (Chaz—84)

·         Someone who needs you (Murphy—15)

·         Or someone altogether different

Bibliotherapeutic Usefulness

This is a great book for mothers and daughters to read together as it invites open, honest discussions about what it is like to be a teenager. It’s also an excellent book for those with a mentally-ill parent or parents whose marriage is floundering.

Reading Level/Interest Level

Reading Level: 5^th grade

Interest Level: 9^th-12^th grade

These levels are according to AR Bookfinder

Challenge Issues

This book includes the following potentially controversial elements:

·         Brief mention of a voodoo doll

·         Bullying

·         Emotional cheating

·         Erotic dreams

·         Inattentive mother

·         Offensive slurs against Jewish people

·         Puberty related changes

·         Sexual assault

·         Talk of masturbation

·         Talk of sex

·         Workaholic father

What My Mother Doesn’t Know has made ALA’s Top Ten Challenged Books in 2011, 2010, 2005, 2004 for reasons including but not limited to offensive language, nudity, sexually explicit content, and being unsuited to the age group. However, while arguments can be made that the book contains all those things it still is one of the most candid novels about growing up that I have ever encountered and Sones’ realistic portrayal of teen life should not be easily discounted. Because of the frank feelings discussed in the novel, it makes it an easy choice for parents wishing to discuss puberty and high school with their teens.

Why Was This Included?

Frequently listed as a challenged book, I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. I had seen Sonya Sones’ books on library shelves for years but had never read any. I also love novels in verse as they usually are written beautifully and read quickly.