Freshman year begins as hell for Mena. Her old church group has ostracized her for something she did that got many of them in legal trouble, and she is the object of their ridicule. Even her parents want as little to do with her as possible. Mena’s only goal is to get through each day as quickly and quietly as possible, but that all changes when she befriends her lab partner, the incredibly smart and outspoken Casey Connor. Casey’s scientific expertise impresses and intimidates Mena, and she feels like she can never be worthy of his attention.

Mena wants nothing more to do with her old crowd, but she can’t help being involved again when they begin to protest the school’s teaching of evolution in science class. Mena spoke up last time because she felt responsible for someone getting hurt. Will she find the courage within herself to stand up for what she believes in again?

EVOLUTION, ME, AND OTHER FREAKS OF NATURE is a startling, controversial, humorous, and question-riddled read that is unlike anything out there. It makes science appealing, yet doesn’t blast religion like most books of its ilk are prone to do.

While Mena is a rather infuriatingly passive protagonist, most of the characters are, indeed, well drawn—including Mena’s passivity. The so-called “Back Turners”—Mena’s old and horrendously close-minded church friends—are for the most part evil villain types, but the heroes and heroines are all extremely quirky, intelligent, and lovable. I wanted more action on Mena’s part, but I understand her position of fear, trying to hide from her old friends who now bully her. Mena’s relationship with her disappointed parents could have been more developed, but I appreciated how Brande is not claiming that science is superior to religion, or that the two cannot coexist. Overall, I really enjoyed this well-written and hopeful debut novel. ( )

The author get a few stars for the creativity of the topic of evolution and creationism but that's about it. The character Mena is somewhat likeable but not someone who I felt great sympathy for as she was bullied and bothered in school. I don't think the author did a good job of creating any depth to Mena's character but considering this is her first novel, it isn't bad. Teen readers might relate the Mena's problems at home and in school. This fairly quick read is definitely more for teens than any other readers. ( )

Evolution, Me, & Other Freaks of Nature is an enjoyable read that does not hold up under close scrutiny.

Mena begins her freshman year of high school as an outcast. She's been kicked out of her church group for mysterious reasons, her parents seem to have turned against her, and her only friend is her nerdy lab partner. When her former church friends decide to protest the teaching of evolution at school, Mena has to choose whether she will take a stand against them.

The book starts slowly. In the opening chapters, Mena's voice feels like a forced imitation of teenager speak, punctuated by awkward slang and an excess of the word "totally," as if this was the only way the author knew to characterize her as young. However, about fifty pages in, Mena emerged as a likeable, realistically flawed character, and the authenticity of her voice carried me through the book. I really believed that she was religiously conflicted, floundering at home, and struggling to process the new ideas her lab partner exposed her to.

Unfortunately, the rest of the characterization felt off. Kayla, her lab partner's older sister, is obnoxious and not quite believable; Ms. Shepard, the science teacher we're suppoesd to love, seemed crazy rather than amazing. Mena's parents' reason for ostracizing her wasn't totally realistic, and the strained link Mena forges between the Bible and evolution is the weakest part of the book.

But for all these flaws, I enjoyed reading it. The ideas the book espouses are not revolutionary for adults who've had time to think over their religious and scientific views, but for teenagers, they feel profound. As someone forced to reconcile her parents' more radical religious reviews with the dictates of reason, I found Mena's conflicts realistic and empathetic. Most importantly, I can't justify giving a poor rating to a book that left me feeling so good at the end. ( )

The first three-quarters of this book were very enjoyable, which is way I'm giving it two and a half stars---even though the ending had to go and ruin it all.

Mena starts out as a confused, lonely girl, looking for her place in her new school, in her family, in the world. It's a little annoying how she just lets everyone walk all over her in the beginning, but she's still likable because she recognizes her weakness and resolves to take steps to correct it. And she does get slightly better over the course of the novel---but in the end, not as much as this reader would have hoped.

For one thing, she feels completely guilty about lying to her parents throughout the novel, even when she is fully justified in doing so, and eventually spills her guts to them. This doesn't really accomplish anything, except to make her feel better (and to assuage the author's guilt for promoting teenagers lying to their unreasonable parents).

For another, her old friends from church consistently act like horrible bigots, culminating in the preacher actually telling her she ought to go kill herself---and just a few pages later, at the end of the book, Mena decides that they simply have a different point of view, no better or worse than her own. Umm, no, those people are hateful and evil---not to mention just plain wrong.

The attempt to have it both ways regarding science and religion---i.e., reason and faith---is, well, retarded. No, Jesus did not believe in evolution; that's just ridiculous. And having the science teacher who got Mena interested in evolution (and science in general) in the first place turn out to be a church-goer herself at the end was particularly bad thematically, merely serving to validate the worst elements in Mena's character and arrest her transition from an unreasonable person to a reasonable one.

This should have been a book about independence, in thought and action. Instead, it turned out to be a book enshrining abject conformity. ( )

Robin Brande has done an exceptional job writing such a delicate subject, Evolution VS. Creationism, which she has depicted with such grace and delicacy that I don't think anyone could read this book and go away angry about the focus of the plot. Not to say that there wouldn't be any disagreements on it somewhere, as you can find on any subject today, but that she airs her views so lightly as to give an idea, not a lecture. Lovable characters, interesting idea, brilliant writing; everything you need for a great read. ( )