Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

“You’ll know her more by your questions than by her answers. Keep looking at her long enough. One day you might see someone you know.”

Book description from Goodreads:

Stargirl. From the day she arrives at quiet Mica High in a burst of color and sound, the hallways hum with the murmur of “Stargirl, Stargirl.” She captures Leo Borlock’s heart with just one smile. She sparks a school-spirit revolution with just one cheer. The students of Mica High are enchanted. At first.

Then they turn on her. Stargirl is suddenly shunned for everything that makes her different, and Leo, panicked and desperate with love, urges her to become the very thing that can destroy her: normal. In this celebration of nonconformity, Newbery Medalist Jerry Spinelli weaves a tense, emotional tale about the perils of popularity and the thrill and inspiration of first love.

Personal Thoughts:

This book is surprisingly good. I didn’t expect how a cute story like this can cover real issues in our society especially teenagers issue about individuality, eccentricity and nonconformity. For under two hundred pages Jerry Spinelli managed to deliver a story with insight and inspiration. A story with a heart and soul.

Susan “Stargirl” Carraway is the most eccentric yet the most loving character I ever read. I love her for being naive and transparent. I like how she march to the beat of her own ukelele and doesn’t care much about what other people thinks about her. She drops all her change on the sidewalks just because she knew it would make little children happy to even see a penny. She smiles a lot, she’s optimistic, and she finds happiness from small things in life. Somehow I envy Stargirl for being innocently good. I don’t know how many people out there in real life who is as good as Stargirl. There is only one person in my mind right now that is close to compare to Stargirl’s good quality. She’s not as eccentric as Stargirl but she’s definitely one of the most loving and good person Id met so far. She is a kind of person who will buy spoiled vegetables just because she knew no one else would buy it. A person that has a heart of gold but never really knows it.

Back to the book, the story is told through a guy’s point of view, which gives this book a refreshing cut compare to what I’ve been reading lately. The ending is predictable but it makes the story more real. By not giving Leo and Stargirl a fairytale ending, it shows more the value of nonconformity. It acknowledges that actions have weight and consequences and popularity may come at a price.

I grab this book as a short read but in the end I get more than I expected. It made me want to be a better person but in a more normal way compare to Stargirl. This book reminds us to look life in a different way. To stop spending too much time focusing on ourselves and to appreciate the beautiful things happening around us. To be unique and just be ourselves and not to be afraid to be different from others. And realize that somehow there is a Stargirl in each of us.