Anna Fienberg

OK, even though the one-night stand turn unexpected teen pregnancy is nothing new to the YA bookshelf, this book was a clear exception.
It was beautifully written from the eyes of an unsure teenaged girl called Callisto. She considers herself a 'moon', living off 'borrowed light' off more popular, more beautiful and more entertaining 'stars' (there's the explanation of the title), that is until she falls pregnant to one of those 'stars'.
She aborts the baby, and what seems to be a quick-fix to show more the result of a futureless teenage relationship haunts Callisto for the rest of her life. The book ends on a happier note, though.
A must read. show less

Reviewed by Cana Rensberger for TeensReadToo.com

Have you ever had the urge to eat M&M's in multiples of five? Maybe you try to walk out to the car in an even number of steps? Brush your teeth the same number of times on each side? Top and bottom? If so, this book is a perfect square for you!

Jackson loves even numbers, especially the number 8. He always does one extra repetition to avoid an odd count. When he moves across the street from Esmerelda, he finds his love of numbers is a perfect show more match to her need to make some sense out of math. Not only is she okay with his numbers fetish, but her fascination with his mother's love of singing the blues encourages Esmerelda to frequently pop by for a visit. At school, he meets Asim, who not only understands Jackson's love of numbers, but who might actually be better at math that he is.

Jackson and his mother were forced to move to the suburbs to avoid unpleasantness from his mother's old casino boss. Now Jackson has a new best friend, and a potential girlfriend. His luck is running hot. Until he gets in a fight with Badman, the school bully. And a blue mustang, license plate number 777, the ugliest and most ominous number of them all, starts trolling his neighborhood. And, finally, Esmerelda disappears.

NUMBER 8, told in the alternate voices of Jackson and Esmerelda, is a fascinating read. I found Esmerelda's passages more engaging in the beginning. But as Jackson begins to live outside his inner world of numbers, his passages become more active and pull you along as you feel his fear and sense of purpose. The way Anna Fienberg ties up all the plot lines leaves the reader feeling like they've just sat through a perfectly executed guitar riff while drinking a warm cup of cocoa. Well done. show less

Yr 10 - Yr 12
Callisto, influenced by her astrophysicist grandmother, views humanity in terms of celestial bodies. She considers herself to be a moon, living off the "borrowed light" of more charismatic individuals, the stars. Now facing an unwanted pregnancy, 16-year-old Callisto has to stop hiding in the shadows and rely on her own judgment.
The phase between Callisto's pregnancy test and her appointment at an abortion clinic seems to move in slow motion, allowing readers time to grasp and show more ponder her predicament, her emotions and her complex relationships with her inattentive parents, her science-minded grandmother, her beloved little brother and her callow ex-boyfriend. show less

I read this in school after it was recommended by the school librarian. Very lyrical and poignant but it was a little depressing to be honest. Callisto is more or less an outcast who is unsure of her own identity and struggles with the revelation that she's pregnant. I found Callisto hard to take at times, she spends so much time in her head and she's a bit whiney. On the other hand she's pregnant by her jerk boyfriend. The romance was unnecessary. The outcome was pretty predictable. It show more wasn't as good as The Witch in the Lake another Fienberg novel but it was enjoyable. show less