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Loading... Stargirl (2000)by Jerry Spinelli
Chapter Book: No one, including Leo, had ever met anyone like stargirl. She's different, unique and special. Leo instantly falls in love. The school at first is all about Stargirl until the decide she's weird, not normal. Leo tries to help her and save her from their classmates by helping her be normal. But she teaches Leo some very important lessons.  KristinPetersMoreno | May 13, 2013 |  This story is short, sweet, and touching. It's told from Leo's point of view, which made it even more interesting. At first, Leo is confused but intrigued by this mysterious girl who has shown up at his school. She dresses strangely, serenades fellow students with "Happy Birthday" in the cafeteria while strumming her ukelele, and cheers for the other school's team as well as their own. She's just so unusual - picture a young (but more modestly dressed) Lady Gaga. Leo finds himself inexplicably drawn to her, and as his feelings for her grow, the other students start to turn their backs on Stargirl. Leo has to decide what is more important - his feelings for Stargirl or the opinion of his friends and classmates. This books really makes you think about issues of conformity and individuality. It makes you think about how you treat others. It brings up a lot of questions about the way people treat one another. Why is someone popular one day and mocked the next? Why do we care so much about what others think of us? The ending was a little disappointing for me, but there is a sequel called Love, Stargirl. I plan to read it and continue with Stargirl's story. The audiobook version of Stargirl was narrated by the late John Ritter who did an excellent job of capturing Leo's conflicted emotions. The unabridged book only spans four CDs, so it's a quick audiobook to get through. I think this story will appeal to readers of all ages but may really resonate with middle- and high-school students in particular. (  ) | May 13, 2013 | edit | You don't know what you've got until you've lost her. ( ) heike6 | May 2, 2013 | WATCH BOOK TRAILER Sixteen-year-old Leo tells the story of Stargirl Caraway, the free spirit who enrolls at Mica High School, not exactly the “hotbed of nonconformity.” Also, Love, Stargirl. KilmerMSLibrary | Apr 30, 2013 | It will be hard to find a more unique character than Stargirl, as she plays the ukelele during lunch, will serenade people when it's their birthday, and dances when there is no music. The student body is fascinated by her especially are narrator Leo Borlock and soon that fascination gives Stargirl popularity which can be fickle and problems ensue. Spinelli has created a truly original character in Stargirl and through her made being unique seem alright, something that preteens need to be reminded of. This book is perfect for middle school student because they are beginning to see that some of their friends are different from the rest and they are also dealing with their first romances as well. I would highly suggest that this book be read in the classroom because it sends such a great message. Lizziep | Apr 27, 2013 | no reviews | add a review Has as a student's study guide
Amazon.com Amazon.com Review (ISBN 0440416779, Mass Market Paperback)"She was homeschooling gone amok." "She was an alien." "Her parents were circus acrobats." These are only a few of the theories concocted to explain Stargirl Caraway, a new 10th grader at Arizona's Mica Area High School who wears pioneer dresses and kimonos to school, strums a ukulele in the cafeteria, laughs when there are no jokes, and dances when there is no music. The whole school, not exactly a "hotbed of nonconformity," is stunned by her, including our 16-year-old narrator Leo Borlock: "She was elusive. She was today. She was tomorrow. She was the faintest scent of a cactus flower, the flitting shadow of an elf owl."In time, incredulity gives way to out-and-out adoration as the student body finds itself helpless to resist Stargirl's wide-eyed charm, pure-spirited friendliness, and penchant for celebrating the achievements of others. In the ultimate high school symbol of acceptance, she is even recruited as a cheerleader. Popularity, of course, is a fragile and fleeting state, and bit by bit, Mica sours on their new idol. Why is Stargirl showing up at the funerals of strangers? Worse, why does she cheer for the opposing basketball teams? The growing hostility comes to a head when she is verbally flogged by resentful students on Leo's televised Hot Seat show in an episode that is too terrible to air. While the playful, chin-held-high Stargirl seems impervious to the shunning that ensues, Leo, who is in the throes of first love (and therefore scornfully deemed "Starboy"), is not made of such strong stuff: "I became angry. I resented having to choose. I refused to choose. I imagined my life without her and without them, and I didn't like it either way." Jerry Spinelli, author of Newbery Medalist Maniac Magee, Newbery Honor Book Wringer, and many other excellent books for teens, elegantly and accurately captures the collective, not-always-pretty emotions of a high school microcosm in which individuality is pitted against conformity. Spinelli's Stargirl is a supernatural teen character--absolutely egoless, altruistic, in touch with life's primitive rhythms, meditative, untouched by popular culture, and supremely self-confident. It is the sensitive Leo whom readers will relate to as he grapples with who she is, who he is, who they are together as Stargirl and Starboy, and indeed, what it means to be a human being on a planet that is rich with wonders. (Ages 10 to 14) --Karin Snelson (retrieved from Amazon Thu, 14 Apr 2011 03:25:17 -0400) In this story about the perils of popularity, the courage of nonconformity, and the thrill of first love, an eccentric student named Stargirl changes Mica High School forever. |
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