Evolution, Me & Other Freaks of Nature

10ish years later, I read it again. It held up.

I agree with the novel's basic premise that rational humans can believe in God's existence/supremacy & simultaneously believe at least some elements of the theory of evolution. That resonates with me. I wish more people understood that the debate is nuanced; there's this helpful gray area that allows for both. You don't have to be on one "side" or the other.

The depiction of the Christians from her church relied heavily on stereotypes & flat characters. This is annoying, but understandable...sadly, it probably resonates with some people's experiences with Pharisaic individuals who claim to be followers of Jesus. (Although, I acknowledge that those of us who sincerely strive to live like show more Jesus still mess up a lot, too—myself definitely included.) The fact that the dynamic, brilliant Ms. Shepherd was a believer? That balanced it out & then some for me.

While I don't agree with the interpretation of the Parable of the Talents—Mena's epiphany that the novel seems to lead up to—I see how she (or the author) got there. Whether or not she's right or I am (or neither of us is), it doesn't matter as much as what we DO agree on: that we were created to follow Him & use our brains at the same time. show less

I wasn't sure about this book -- I read the dust jacket summary, it sounded interesting, but maybe not quite what I wanted to read. And then, well, I read it. And I have to say that Robin Brande is brilliant. Brande's story follows the freshman year of Mean, a quiet unassuming girl who thrust herself into the center of attention (not on purpose) and got kicked out of her church for doing what she believes is right. Similarly to Barry Lyga's novel Hero-Type, we don't know exactly what Mean did until halfway through the novel. This is probably the one thing that kind of annoyed me, because I kept wanting to know what she did, but I understand why Brande wrote the story the way she did. In a lighthearted (in some ways) and touching novel, show more Brande explores exactly what it means to be Christian and confronted with things that you used to believe in, but aren't sure about anymore. She turns her novel into one of the most compelling fictional descriptions of the differences of church and state -- as well as Christianity and evolution. There's obviously much, much more to the story than this, but th idea that Brande can write a brilliant coming of age story and mix it up with these serious themes is a clear endorsement of her skills as a writer. Not only did she keep me throughly entertained, but she did it in a way that felt neither patronizing nor preachy. I highly, highly recommend this book. show less

It's hard enough to start high school, but to have all your former friends hate you makes it even worse. This is what happens to Mena, who's been kicked out of her church, shunned by her friends, and on strict restrictions with her parents, all because she tried to do the right thing. When a boy, Casey, is assigned as her science lab partner, Mena knows her parents won't approve of her going over to a boy's house, even if it's for school, so she lies. Then, when her science teacher starts to teach evolution and the church kids protest, Mena finds herself struggling with reconciling science and religion, and falling in love with Casey at the same time.

Mena Reece just knows her first day of school is going to suck. After all, she's the one responsible for getting her whole church sued... and for a million dollars, no less. Now her friends hate her, she's on permanent restriction, and even her parents are giving her the silent treatment. The one bright spot, well, the one possible bright spot, is her science class partner -- okay, so he's sort of geeky, but in a bright, cute, enthusiastic sort of way. Mena resolves to survive freshman year, but it's not going to be easy.

Brande tackles a controversial issue with humor and heart. While the characters on the side of evolution are more well-rounded and sympathetic than the smart-mouthed, hypocritical, holier-than-thou members of Mena's show more church, religion doesn't come off poorly -- just small-minded people. And let's face it, we've all met people whose outlook on life is just as narrow as Mena's pastor and her former friends' -- although admittedly, Mena's parent's attitude is a bit disturbing. A readable, not too heavy-handed weigh-in on the side of evolution and religion. show less

High school isn't starting out like Mena had always dreamed it would. Her friends aren't speaking to her because she's responsible for most of their parents being sued. She's been excommunicated from her church because she did the right thing and put a stop to the evil things her friends were doing. Her parents aren't even exactly speaking to her right now because her actions caused them to lose a big chunk of their business clients.

The only bright spots in Mena's world are her new biology teacher, the brilliant and quirky Ms. Shepherd, and her lab partner, the super smart geek Casey. Mena's doing a project with Casey and he's determined to have the best project in their class. When Mena goes to his house to work on their project, she show more finds that Casey has an awesome, warm house and a loving family. But everything Mena has found becomes jeopardized when Ms. Shepherd announces that their next unit will be evolution. The church kids immediately turn their back on the class and demand that intelligent design be taught as well. Mena is stuck between her past and her future and the only thing that keeps her together is the knowledge that no matter how crappy everything is right now, she did the right thing.

A thought-provoking novel that examines some pertinent issues. I literally could not put this book down. Mena is a great character dealing with some tough conflicts and I found myself rooting for her the whole way. Brande doesn't tell you what the church kids did that was so horrible until about halfway through the book and I was totally expecting it to be anticlimactic, but... it wasn't. Highly recommended.

(I wouldn't be at all surprised if this book got some Printz attention...) show less

Mena Reece did what she thought was the right thing but ended up being ostracized by her church and all her friends. In biology, her brilliant, slightly eccentric teacher pairs her with a brilliant, slightly eccentric guy. During the unit on evolution, her old church friends launch a protest. Mena, meanwhile, must discover how her beliefs reconcile with science, as she and her crush-inducing lab partner get caught up in the controversy. And what will she tell her parents?

Evolution, Me & Other Freaks of Nature tackles issues of morality, ethics, teenage doubt, and high school crushes, not to mention conflicts between science and religion, in a balanced, thoughtful, and entertaining fashion. Mena is an extremely well-written character, show more whose confusion is balanced by strong beliefs. This novel is about navigating the world within your own framework; how ideas and actions reflect who you want to be and what you believe in. It examines how new thoughts are not the enemy, although they do bring new challenges. Mena has a great cast of supporting characters, who help her learn how to speak up, and how to evolve. The story, especially the romantic plot line, develops very sweetly in spite of some very difficult and ugly events. For me, especially at the beginning, it echoed Laurie Halse Anderson's Speak, but ended up being far less stark. show less

I enjoyed this book a lot, it is probably a little high in age range for me to use though. I might let a fifth grader read this book at the youngest. The story deals with all the normal high school issues, love, friendship, acceptance, and some not so normal ones. The main character is cast out of he group of friends when she revels the pastor of her church has been encouraging the youth class kids to try to "convert" one of their fellow classmates into being straight. They bully him so bad he attempts suicide and she must reveal the truth.