Peggy Kern

Originally posted here

This short novel really places a spotlight on an area of humanity many people are blissfully aware of. Child prostitution is a real issue in many countries yet many people's minds just can't go there, I know mine couldn't before reading Little Peach.

What I found most frightening was how easy it was for a young vulnerable girl to get picked up by a predator. Our main character, Michelle, literally arrives at the bus stop in New York and is targeted instantly by a sex show more trafficker. I was questioning the reality of this at first, but after reading the authors note at the end of the book, I was shocked to learn that that is actually a common story of victims. Baby in particular was a very disturbing character, I don't know many twelve year olds who are as babyish as her. She seemed to be either extremely developmentally stunted or has learned to act that way because that is what makes her desirable to perverts. It's probably a bit of both which is very tragic.

The book did feel quite light on content, and seemed skeletal. Characters could have been more fleshed out, and a lot of details are glossed over at some points. There isn't really a resolution to this story, it's quite open ended so it's not really known what happens to Michelle. In real life, I suppose victims of child sex trafficking find it nearly impossible to escape the lifestyle they have been forced into, so a neat happy ending would have been highly unrealistic.

All in all, I liked this book but I felt the story could have been so much more. show less

Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales

Quick & Dirty: A short but intense and thought provoking read.

Opening Sentence: You asked me to tell you the truth, but I’m not sure you’ll believe me, even though I’ve practically killed myself to find you.

The Review:

Little Peach is just over 200 pages but what a powerful read. This book is a must read for all readers despite your interests since it covers such an important issue; prostitution and the sale of vulnerable girls as a business. It’s show more hard to believe that these things still happen but believe I must because it’s all true. There are young girls like Michelle who have run away from home to escape sexual abuse, only to be manipulated into a ‘better life’ by pimps like Devon.

“You only missin’ if somebody looking for you.” Kat’s words slice through the air. “Understand? We ain’t missin’, Peach. We just gone.”

‘Urgh’ is the only decent word I can use to describe Devon. How can someone stoop so low, taking advantage of damaged girls, giving them false dreams and ultimately owning these girls? The actual branding of his name on them was horrific. He abused their trust, pretending to be their friend. That’s just, urgh.

“But you try to take off? They’ll beat your ass ‘cause you’ll get us all locked up. Understand? Every single one of them. If you lose your shit and go runnin’ out the door lookin’ for fuckin’ Batman to come up in here and save your ass, you gonna get beat. And then I’m gonna get beat for not beatin’ you myself.”

Although Little Peach focuses on three girls in particular, each of them had sad histories that were described with such detail that I felt connected to them all. Of course, Michelle being the main character held most of my sympathy. We learn about her horrifying history, how her trust is abused and the things she is forced to do to survive.

“Michelle? Is your mother dead?”
I want to say yes. I want it to be true. I want to say she’s the one who died on the couch last year, who got wheeled out on a stretcher and never came back. I want it to be her.
But the wrong people die. The dead people are the good ones, the bad ones get to walk around like nothing. Like they got a right to keep breathing while the ones you need just leave their skin, waste away till there ain’t nothing left but a stupid dirty T-shirt and what you can barely remember.

However, there are thousands of girls out there that come from terrible backgrounds and end up like the main characters of this story. The worst thing is that nothing is done about it. We say we’ve come so far, developed mind blowing technology but issues such as prostitution and sexual abuse have been there for centuries and continue to remain unchanged. Little Peach makes you wonder whether such issues will ever be resolved…

Notable Scene:

I know that you will take me to a group home. I got no family. There’s no one left to love me. That’s where girls like me end up: a brick building with other kids that nobody wants. We stay there till we’re big and then they let us go too.

I’m not stupid, Kat. I know there ain’t no magic place for kids like us.

FTC Advisory: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins provided me with a copy of Little Peach. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review. show less

plot: ★★★★☆
my GOD, this was depressing and devastating and just miserable. but I will say it takes a talented author to take such a dark and grim topic, and manage to tell a story that doesn’t feel like it’s overdramatizing the situation or simultaneously making light of the situation. Little Peach does a fantastic job of sitting just in the middle - it stays authentic, but it isn’t overwhelming for younger readers at the same time (imo).

the plot follows a 14 year old girl show more named Michelle. her mom starts to date a not great dude, and essentially kicks her out of the house with $50. she goes to New York City, hoping to find one of her friends there, but does not. instead, she finds a man named Devon who offers to take her in.

it’s not an easy read, but it is well done.
writing/prose: ★★★★★
the writing feels very genuine to a 14 year old voice. the story is written in a way that makes you feel extremely sympathetic to Michelle, and even the supporting characters: Baby and Kat.

pacing: ★★★★★
I mean, this is a very short story, but it is also fast paced. I almost finished this in one day. it really hits the ground running and literally does not stop until it’s over.

humor: ☒
n/a—this isn’t that kind of book, so I’m not going to give it a rating for humor.

characters: ★★★★★
to be the characters were absolutely the best part of the book. I loved getting to see a spectrum of girls, all in the same shitty situation. Michelle, who’s 14, and having an internal battle on trying to make the situation the best she can (make them a family, cook dinners for everyone, believing they’ll buy a house together, etc.) vs acknowledging that this actually a really horrible situation to be trapped in. Kat, whose age I’m not sure was ever shared, but she strikes me as someone possibly 16-17ish? she’s much more jaded, but even then, she still hopes for something better. And Baby, who’s 12 (YES, T W E L V E) who almost regresses to an actual baby as her own defense mechanism.

spice level: ☒
n/a—this isn’t even in the universe of that kind of book. there is sexual content (important, I feel, to mention if someone younger is going to read it) but it isn’t explicit. it’s more implied. and it’s definitely not a good thing.

audiobook narration: ★★★★★
Imani Parks read the audio for this book and did a phenomenal job. she really captured the emotion in Michelle’s character, and the personality of the other characters when lending her voice to them. so good.

over-all enjoyment: ★★★★☆
enjoyment feels wrong, because as I said, this book was devastating. it was well-written, and truly still worth reading (probably more worth reading, to be honest, as it is a very real world problem that people should be discussing more) even with it being so heartbreaking. if you enjoy books that have lifelike feeling characters, I would absolutely give this a chance. the characters are the best part. also, it’s a short book so you could easily read it in an afternoon. show less

The Test (Bluford Series). By Peggy Kern. Townsend Press. 2011. 139 pages. $4.95 pbk. 978-1591942344. Grades 8-12.

At the age of twenty, Liselle Mason comes back to her high school to talk frankly to current students about her experience as a pregnant teen. Told via flashback (an effective “it gets better” perspective), her story is frank, attention-grabbing, and refreshingly devoid of preachiness. She struggles over what to do and who to tell, meeting indifference (from her father) and show more resentment (from Oscar, the father of her child) along the way: ultimately, thanks to her mother’s pledge of support, her older brother’s encouragement, and the frightening example of hands-off parenting style exhibited by her cousin (also a teen mom), she decides to raise her baby. The novel focuses effectively on this decision-making process, showcasing Liselle’s journey to newfound maturity: the novel ends with Liselle, who hopes to become a counselor, comforting a teenage girl who is similarly “in trouble.” The combination of a mature plot and concise language make this novel a good choice for easing hesitant high school readers into novels. The work’s only drawback is that the teen pregnancy storyline can perhaps veer into tired stereotypes about urban youth. But Kern’s candid depiction of the Masons’ worries and hardships in a low-income, single-parent home offers a kernel of truth present in the experiences of many high schoolers who do not often get the chance to see themselves reflected in YA fiction. Recommended. show less