Review: Pretty Girl-13 by Liz Coley

Title: Pretty Girl-13

Author: Liz Coley

Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books

Publication Date: 3.19.2013

Pages: 352

Genre: Contemporary

Series: No

Source: eARC from publisher

Rating: A

Summary (from Amazon):

Pretty girl
13 when she
went missing

lost
to her family
to her friends
to the world

found
but still missing
her self

In Liz Coley's alarming and fascinating psychological mystery, sixteen-year-old Angie Chapman must piece together the story of her kidnapping and abuse. Pretty Girl-13 is a disturbing—and ultimately empowering—page-turner about accepting our whole selves, and the healing power of courage, hope, and love.

Review:

Wow.

That was literally the only thought I could form after finished Pretty Girl-13 by Liz Coley. My mind was totally fried after reading this book because it was so good, but absolutely put me through the emotional wringer. I was spent and exhausted by the conclusion.

Broken in three distinct, but vital parts, Pretty Girl-13 is the story of Angie, a girl who was kidnapped in the early morning hours during a Girl Scout camping trip. When she mysteriously arrives home three years later with no memory of what happened, she has to piece the missing years of her life back together.

Watching Angie struggle to come to terms with losing three years was hard. In her mind she was still 13, but when she looked in the mirror all she could see was a strange 16 year old. When it came time for her to go back to school, all her friends and peers were juniors while she was several years behind. Her parents were elated she was home, but unsure as to how to handle her and her amnesia. I felt their struggle as they fought to figure out how to accept and move on from what happened.

I wasn’t expecting the twist that came with Angie’s story—that while in captivity she formed several alter-egos to accept and handle the brutality and pain she endured (hence her amnesia). As a psych grad, I loved the way Coley explained multiple personalities and how they came to be and that each personality was its own person. Coley explained everything in a wonderful way so it was easy to understand. I also think it will help a lot of the stigma that comes when people hear about multiple personalities. “Schizo” is a derogatory insult hurled around all too frequently.

This book is not for the squeamish and deals with a lot of heavy subject matter—kidnapping, rape, sexual abuse, psychological trauma … The list goes on. But Coley handles each situation with a grace and tactfulness that is to be commended. The fact that she got me immersed into the novel that I cried multiple times and finished the book needing a long nap speaks volumes. I wasn’t just mentally involved in this book—I was emotionally and physically attached to it and Angie. For a book lover, there is no greater joy than when a book can evoke a physical reaction from you. This is one you simply can’t pass up.

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