Wintergirls Week of: 12/9/13

Pages: Beginning - End
Prompt: Describe what makes this book interesting
 Explain why somebody should or should not read this?
Quote a passage & respond to it. How did it make you feel?

 This week I read Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson. Wintergirls is about a girl named Lia. Lia looses her friend Cassie who was bulimic. She was too late to recover, meanwhile Lia is a struggling anorexic. What makes this an interesting book is that Laurie Halse Anderson's writing makes the readers almost feel like we understand what Lia is going through. Of course we will never fully understand the self hatred she specifically had with herself. Lia was never pleased with her body. Throughout the book, Lia says her goal weight. She even says herself, once she gets to her goal (example: 95 ((dangerous for 18, by the way)) then she'll want to go to 85, to 75, until she disappears.

 I do recommend everyone to read this book. Wintergirls really taught me about eating disorders and how dangerous they can be! This book can teach you a lot about things that are never mentioned in class so that's why you should read it. It may be triggering at some parts, but you have to be mature. I do not know if they have this book at the school library. If they don't, I would understand why. At this age, people will get ideas from things they hear and read. That's where being mature takes place. If someone is seriously struggling with something, get help. Please, that is all I have to say about that.

  "But something happened. In the dead time between Saturday night and Sunday morning, she called me. Of course I didn’t pick up. She was drunk-dialing, or prank-dialing. I wasn’t going to let her sucker me into being her friend again just so she could turn around and crush me one more time.

. . . body found in a motel room, alone . . .

I didn’t pick up. I didn’t listen to her messages yesterday. I was too angry to even look at the phone. She’s still waiting for me. I sit down on the mound of unwashed pajama bottoms and sweatshirts and dig out the phone. Open it. Cassie called thirty-three times, starting at 11:30 Saturday night.

RETRIEVE VOICE MAIL

“Lia? It’s me. Call me.”

Cassie.

Second message: “Where are you? Call me back.”

Cassie.

Third: “I’m not playing, Overbrook. I really need to

talk to you.”

Cassie, two days ago, Saturday.

“Call me.”

“Please, please, call me.”

“Look, I’m sorry I was such a bitch. Please.”

“I know you’re getting these messages.”

“You can be mad at me later, okay? I really need to

talk to you.”

“You were right—it wasn’t your fault.”

“There’s nobody else to talk to.”

“Oh, God.”

From 1:20 to 2:55, she hung up fifteen times.

Next: “Please, Lia-Lia.” Her voice was slurring.

“I’m so sad. I can’t get out.”

“Call me. It’s a mess.”

Two more hang-ups.

3:20, very slurred: “I don’t know what to do.”

3:27. “I miss you. Miss you.”

I bury the phone at the bottom of the pile and put on a heavier sweatshirt before I head for my car. Winter comes early in New Hampshire."

 Cassie died in a motel room. She binged and purged, drank, and was a big mess. Then, she died. This part made me feel many emotions. One of them being sad. I felt bad for Cassie because she's reaching out for Lia's help but Lia won't listen to her because she doesn't want to be sucked into what she thinks is a joke. That reminds me of "The Boy Who Cried Wolf". Whatever it was that Cassie did to push Lia away, she was tired of. I understand why Lia wouldn't pay attention. Why would she have to listen to her? I learn throughout the book that Cassie broke Lia mentally. This lead to the unfortunate death.

Though it's kind of sad to see how broken these girls were Wintergirls is now one of my favorite books.