Please Ignore Vera Dietz

Is it okay to hate a dead kid? Even if you loved him once? Even if he was my best friend? Is it okay to hate him for being dead?

Yes, Vera, it is, because I hate Charlie, too. (But unlike Vera, I do not feel compelled to forgive him.)

By the time I read through Please Ignore Vera Dietz I had to question: why the hype? Why is this book popular and, by the large, so well received? If I am going to speak honestly, I have to say that I would rather not recap this book at all. The only emotion King roused in me was the strongest, most long-lasting heat-wave of anger I’ve experienced by reading a book, and it was all directed at Charlie.

To top it lightly, Charlie betrayed and bullied his best friend–from feeding the entire school a Dietz family secret to chucking beer cans in her direction, and not to mention tossing a pile of some literal nasty onto her head. Charlie was cruel at every chance he got, sullied everything that was sacred in their friendship, and offered no apologies. I won’t deny it: if I were Vera, I’d cry. That is some cruel punishment from your childhood BFF.

The book begins at Charlie’s funeral, however — he died before they two could mend their shattered friendship. Throughout, “a word from the dead kid” appears as Charlie talks about his decisions, and of Vera, but he cannot explain his betrayal. Paraphrased, and if memory serves me right, his reasoning stands: “So why did I betray Vera? I don’t know.” Wow, how enlightening.

Charlie loved Vera but shunned her away out of fear, believing she is levels above him in a world of class. I can respect Vera’s character: she loses her best friend twice–a lost friendship that can never be restored, and despite the many ways in which Charlie trampled over her, she holds her head up. But can she find it in her to forgive Charlie? (Because I cannot and will not.) Aside from her secret fancy of alcohol binging, Vera displays humbling traits in spite of all that has occurred.

And yet: just as I don’t have it in me to forgive Charlie’s actions, I feel nothing toward Vera. Nothing. Not even the slightest drop of sympathy. Charlie treated her cruelly, and although she suffers for it, I feel that Ms. Dietz is underdeveloped. I fully acknowledged Vera’s presence in the book, but I didn’t connect and continued reading as if she were a nagging part of the background. To some extent, it was an odd reading experience. Even more so, it was simply frustrating. ( )

What a wonderful find! This is a very thought provoking book dealing with many subjects including bullying, friendship, betrayal, death, physical abuse, and grappling with honesty and doing the right thing.

Vera Dietz is haunted by the mother who abandoned her, leaving her father to raise her. A stripper who ran away when Vera was a young child, Vera fears that she too will become like her mother. Her best friend Charlie fears he will become his father and will physically and emotionally abuse women. Struggling with identity issues, their relationship is longstanding and strong, until Charlie leaves Vera behind to run with the wrong crowd, Vera is sadder than sad. When Charlie betrays Vera because he needs so desperately to fit in, Vera cannot forgive.

Charlie's choices cost his life and now his ghost haunts Vera to come forward to clear his name. Charlie's new friends border of sociopathic and his new girl friends is crazy and controlling.

Acting out in violent ways, the girlfriend burns down the local pet shop, leaving the puppies to die. When Charlie tries to get out of the relationship, he pays a very high price, and after his death he is blamed for the fire.

While the subject matter is difficult, this is indeed worth the read. The psychology of abandonment, the need to fit in, the repercussions of bad choices are handled very deftly in this book.

Longing to fly under the radar, Vera knows she must stand tall and tell authorities what she knows.

The author does a wonderful job of portraying Vera's relationship with her father and his struggles.

Highly recommended!!!!!

It is sad and it is funny. It is quirky and it is serious. It is redemptive and profoundly touching. ( )

This story of Vera's and Charlie's friendship, their slow separate spirals toward destruction, and the way that Vera rebuilds, is mesmerizing. High schoolers will eat this up. ( )

AS King does a fantastic job of taking the reader along a journey of teen awakening and brings the characters to life. ( )

King's non-linear, almost jumpy storyline worked exceptionally well with Vera's story. I liked it very much, and I liked Vera. Her issues were very believable and her coping mechanisms seemed familiar. I thought she really grew over the course of the novel, and though there was a bit of cheese in the resolution, it worked.

Strong characters (even the pagoda!) and an interesting tale. Recommended. ( )