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Description edit see section history

When she is caught in the backseat of a car with her older brother's best friend--Deanna Lambert's teenage life is changed forever. Struggling to overcome the lasting repercussions and the stifling role of "school slut," she longs to escape a life defined by her past. With subtle grace,... read more

Summary edit see section history

Deanna Lambert is 16, three years older and wiser than she was when she was caught "mating" in the back seat of a car with a guy she didn't even love. She's not even sure she really liked him. Her brother has a girlfriend who lives in the basement of Deanna's house with their baby, April. Her... read more (warning: may contain spoilers)

Deanna Lambert is 16, three years older and wiser than she was when she was caught "mating" in the back seat of a car with a guy she didn't even love. She's not even sure she really liked him. Her brother has a girlfriend who lives in the basement of Deanna's house with their baby, April. Her everyday life includes trying to get her dad to forgive her, playing with her baby niece, and hanging out with her bestfriends, Lee and Jason in small Pacifica (Her town, "Pathetica," as she calls it), California. Deanna's life is thrown into chaos when she gets a job at a pizzeria, and realizes she shares the job with Tommy, her ex-boyfriend she was caught "mating" with. She tries everything in the world to avoid him but he just wont get out of Deanna's mind.

Characters/People edit see section history

  • Deanna Lambert: A sixteen year old girl and the main character who is trying to start over. Deanna was caught by her dad with Tommy in his car when she was thirteen and regrets it.
  • Darren Christopher: Deanna's older brother who lives in the basement with his girlfriend, Stacy, and their young daughter, April.
  • Tommy Webber: Tommy Webber is the guy that was caught with Deanna. He was 17 and she was only 13. Every time Deanna sees Tommy she gets scared and wants him gone
  • Stacy: Darren's girlfriend. She got pregnant at 18 with April and moved in with Darren because her mother kicked her out. She's hot tempered, sleep deprived, and completely overwhelmed by what her life has become
  • Jason: Deanna's best friend, and Lee's boyfriend. Deanna is jealous of him and Lee's relationship because Deanna likes Jason.
  • Lee: Deanna's newest best friend. Also, Jason's girlfriend. Her family is very religious.
  • Michael Bourret: Deanna's 46 year old boss that is there for Deanna to protect her from Tommy.
  • Dee Dee: Deanna's nick name from middle school.
  • Tucker Bradford: A senior jock that follows Bruce around.
  • Bruce Cowell: A rude senior jock.
  • Brenda: One of Deanna's coworkers.
  • Mrs. Lambert: Deanna and Darren's mother.
  • Mr. Lambert: Deanna and Darren's father who found Deanna and Tommy. After the incident, Mr. Lambert barely interacts with his daughter and barely even looks at her. Deanna misses her relationship with her dad and craves his forgiveness.
  • April: Stacy's and Darren's infant daughter.
  • Melony Fletcher: Add a description of this character.
  • Corvette Kim
  • Caitlin Spinelli
  • Jolene Hancock
  • Dad
  • Ray Garton
  • Jeremy Walker
  • Mr. North
  • Robin
  • I’d
Show all 24 characters
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Quotes edit see section history

  • “Same shit, different day.”
    Darren
  • Popular Highlights from Kindle Customers
  • When the remembering was done, the forgetting could begin.
    Highlighted by 40 Kindle customers
  • sometimes there was no reason to believe in God and you’d look at your life and know it was crazy to feel peaceful but you did anyway, and that was faith.
    Highlighted by 28 Kindle customers
  • But be ready, when it comes, to decide if you will take the outstretched hand and let it pull you ashore.
    Highlighted by 26 Kindle customers
  • Forgetting isn’t enough. You can paddle away from the memories and think they are gone.
    Highlighted by 17 Kindle customers
  • That’s how you know you really trust someone, I think; when you don’t have to talk all the time to make sure they still like you or prove that you have interesting stuff to say.
    Highlighted by 16 Kindle customers
  • “How am I supposed to find my own way out,” I repeated, tears rolling down my face, “when every time I turn around . . . there’s me?”
    Highlighted by 10 Kindle customers
  • I know that having faith in your family isn’t the same as God or religion or whatever, but I could kind of get what Lee meant about believing in something when it made more sense not to.
    Highlighted by 10 Kindle customers
  • What if everyone got another chance after making a big mistake?
    Highlighted by 9 Kindle customers
  • I, Deanna Lambert, belong to no one, and no one belongs to me. I don’t know what to do.
    Highlighted by 6 Kindle customers
  • It came down to the smallest things, really, that a person could do to say I’m sorry, to say it’s okay, to say I forgive you. The tiniest of declarations that built, one on top of the other, until there was something solid beneath your feet. And then . . . and then. Who knew?
    Highlighted by 5 Kindle customers
Show all 11 quotes from this book

First Sentence edit see section history

I was thirteen when my dad caught me with Tommy Webber in the back of Tommy's Buick, parked next to the old Chart House down in Montara at eleven o'clock on a Tuesday night.

Themes & Symbolism edit see section history

  • Honesty: Honesty is sometimes all people are looking for
  • forgiveness: Forgiving your past is hard and hurts, but it is the first step to moving on.
  • The Importance of Friendship: True friends are there, no matter what.
  • Big Brother: Sometimes the big brother is the best person to go to for advice.

Authors & Contributors edit see section history

  1. Sara Zarr (Author)

First Edition edit see section history

Original Language: English
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Country: United States of America
Publication Date: February 1, 2008
ISBN: 0316014540
Page Count: 224

Awards edit see section history

Notes for Parents edit see section history

Reading Level: Young Adults

This is a book in which a girl struggles with the consequences of sexual activity she was not mature enough to handle. It is very good at demonstrating these problems, and has an important message of forgiveness. However, as befits the material, it does make mention of sexual activity, and has some mature language.


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