It’s a perfectly common occurrence to feel REALLY unsure of exactly who-the-hell you are in those muddy years of adolescence. We become confused little creatures who try on new identities just for the fun of it, and in the meantime, usually listen to a bit too much Kurt Cobain and smudge a bit too much black eyeliner under our eyes.
In Caitlin Moran’s novel, How To Build a Girl, our wily main character Johanna Morrigan, affords us a glimpse into her life while grappling the insidious beast of adolescence. The novel is funny, smart and modern, and I’m going to make a wild and vast statement… but I truly believe this should be recommended reading for every girl during teenhood.
Johanna, a girl with a knack for jokes and a love for alternative tunes, grows up before our very eyes and experiences a slew of hilarious, yet distinctly believable encounters with sex, music, and hard drinking. She is a hilarious pot of bubbling personality, witty quips, and sage anecdotes, yet we, as readers, never feel that she’s trying to push some sort of agenda down our throats either. Our main gal is distinctly honest, funny, and rough-around-the edges.
How often do we find a female protagonist so willing to speak openly about her sexuality AS WELL as her career? Not very often. However, Johanna gives absolutely ZERO qualms about authority and societal structures and even drops out of school to pursue a career as a music journalist in hopes of supporting her impoverished family. She is independent, resilient and a character who puts a face to class struggles that often go under or misrepresented. Be prepared to sit in a cozy chair, crank up some 90’s alternative rock, and devour this delicious confection of a book cover to cover. You won’t regret it.