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The Day After Tomorrow
A Gift of Forgiveness for Julia Monroe

by Sandee Sglarlata

     

Who is Julia Monroe? Why should we care about her? Is it necessary to go through what Julia experienced? If I were discussing The Day After Tomorrow with a group of adolescent girls, those are just some of the questions I might ask them. The first part of this instructional fable is a stream-of-consciousness account of the life of Julia Monroe, a fictional teen who describes her thoughts and actions relating to first day of high school, clothes, family life and her boyfriend. The second half of the book is a rather poignant account of Julia's striving to deal with her out-of-whack emotions and attempting to resolve who she is currently with, what she truly desires, and who she actually wants to be.

Although this book was written primarily for teenagers, because of its simplistic writing style I think most teenagers would find The Day After Tomorrow beneath their reading level. I cannot see the same teenage girls who flocked to bookstores to read the Twilight series being excited about a somewhat one-dimensional, self-centered adolescent whose only romantic interlude goes awry, and whose life is filled with petty concerns about her family and friends. With that said, most teenage girls’ lives more closely resemble Julia Monroe's than Bella Swan's.

Many of the feelings expressed by Julia are reminiscent of the girls characterized in Reviving Ophelia, a non-fiction book that chronicles what happens to girls as they become young women in today's society. As a former guidance counselor, one application of this easy-to-read-book would be to use it as discussion material for an ongoing support group for teenage girls who are dealing with identity issues, emerging sexuality, body image concerns, eating disorders or peer pressure issues.

The Book

AC Publishing
February 2009
Paperback
978-0-9800824-5-5
Tween Fiction / Ages 12-14
More at Amazon.com
Excerpt
NOTE:

The Reviewer

Donna Satterlee Ross
Reviewed 2009
NOTE: Reviewer Donna Satterlee Ross is the co-editor of That's Life with Autism: Tales And Tips for Families With Autism and is currently working on a new book about autism and humor.
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