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My Life as a Rhombus

by Varian Johnson

ISBN13: 9780738711607
ISBN10: 0738711608
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Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

Homework plus strawberry ice cream equals a typical night for high school senior and math whiz Rhonda Lee. Angling for a full scholarship to Georgia Tech, the pressure is on. And dating isn't part of the equation. Teenage boys are only after one thing, right? She should know considering her last boyfriend left her heartbroken ... and pregnant. At the time, an abortion seemed like Rhonda's only option. If it was the right decision, why is she filled with anger and regret? Will she ever trust another guy? Or forgive her over-protective father? And herself? The last person Rhonda would ever expect to understand is Sarah Gamble, the richest and most popular girl at their South Carolina prep school. While tutoring Sarah in trigonometry, Rhonda discovers a secret about her that instantly draws them together. As Sarah's belly swells, a decision must be made. And Rhonda finds herself supporting a friend facing an all-too-familiar dilemma, even as Sarah makes an unexpected choice.

Synopsis:

A 2009 New York Public Library Stuff for the Teen Age Selection

Boys + Love = Trouble Right?

Staying on track at school means a boy-free equation for Rhonda Lee, who spends most evenings doing homework and eating Chinese takeout with her dad. While Rhonda needs a scholarship for college, some kids at her private high school, like beautiful Sarah Gamble, seem to coast along on popularity and their parents' money.

When forced to tutor Sarah in trigonometry, Rhonda recognizes all too well the symptoms-queasiness, puking, exhaustion-that Sarah is trying to mask. On a sudden impulse, Rhonda shares her past with Sarah. Exchanging their secrets adds up to more truths than either girl would have dreamed.

Without a bit of preaching, this is] a story of two teenage girls who are faced with the consequences of unplanned pregnancies. Readers] will love the emotional peaks and valleys of the tale. -Ellen Wittlinger, author of Hard Love

A sensitive and powerful friendship story. Realistic and heartfelt. -Cynthia Leitich Smith, author of Tantalize

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Average customer rating based on 2 comments:

: blbooks, November 12, 2008 (view all comments by blbooks)
Rhonda the Rhombus. Perhaps not the most-appealing nickname a girl can have. But...Rhonda makes for quite a good heroine as one of the stars in Varian Johnson's My Life As A Rhombus.

Rhonda Lee is great at math. She excels so much that she tutors students of all ages at West Columbia Community Center. Which is how our heroine comes to meet Sarah Gamble. Sarah is one of the beautiful, popular people. Sarah needs help...and she needs it quickly if she's going to pull her grades up. But what starts as a rather reluctant relationship...becomes much much more through the course of the novel. As these two unlikely teens find they have much in common.

Their common bond? Unplanned pregnancies. Rhonda's is in the past--two years previous--and Sarah's is in the present. Sarah's secret is revealed to Rhonda alone. And the two come to discuss life and all its hardships in detail as Sarah puzzles out what to do with her life, her body. Rhonda's pregnancy ended in abortion--it's a choice that was out of her hands. Rhonda's father controlled the situation then, and this has put some strain into the relationship. It's not that Rhonda wanted to have her baby--not really. But she wanted to be the one to think it through, the one to decide. She wanted the choice to be hers. And the whole situation--sex, pregnancy, abortion--still haunts her in many, many ways. Her past keeps her from living in the present.

Sarah's friendship--and Sarah's brother, David--offer Rhonda a unique opportunity. A chance to offer comfort and support, yes, but a chance to heal as well. A chance to learn that your life need not be defined by past mistakes and regrets. A chance to accept life in all its fullness.

I enjoyed this one. I liked the transformation and development of the relationships between Rhonda and Sarah and Rhonda and David. For that matter, I liked the characterizations in general.

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: Kaitlin, October 31, 2008 (view all comments by Kaitlin)
The narrative is refreshing and unique, and it doesn't linger on social stigma's of teen pregnancy, but it manages to address the profound effect that pregnancy and abortions have on teens and their families without being preachy.
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Product Details

ISBN:: 9780738711607
Author:: Johnson, Varian
Publisher:: Flux
Subject:: General
Subject:: Pregnancy
Subject:: Family problems
Subject:: Single-parent families
Publication Date:: January 2008
Binding:: Paperback
Grade Level:: - Up
Language:: English
Pages:: 304
Dimensions:: 8.00x5.26x.75 in. .67 lbs.
Age Level:: 12-UP

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