You Know I'm No Good by Jessie Ann Foley (review)
Buy Issue for $25 at JHUP- You Know I'm No Good by Jessie Ann Foley
Foley, Jessie Ann You Know I'm No Good. Quill Tree/Harper Collins, 2020 [320p] Trade ed. ISBN 9780062957085 $17.99 E-book ed. ISBN 9780062957108 $9.99 Reviewed from digital galleys R Gr. 9-12
When a violent outburst lands Mia in a therapeutic boarding school for troubled teenage girls, she's disinclined to move past her life of drinking, drugs, failing grades, and sex with boys she barely knows. Still, she finds herself bonding with dormmates, and her aggressive detachment is revealed as a cover for deep-seated self-hatred. One final family secret threatens to undermine everything, though, leaving Mia to wonder how best to love herself for herself. A captivating portrait of a girl at war with herself, this novel grapples with complex social issues in the guise of one young person's trauma. The narrative voice places readers in Mia's head from the [End Page 83] start, but Foley still crafts a gradual reveal of her damaged psyche, and as Mia shifts from withdrawn to open, from self-hating to self-acceptance, her story provide thoughtful, if sometimes didactic, insights into the impact of social expectations on teenage girls and the power of hard-won resilience. Stark descriptions of Mia's sexual experience, meanwhile, complicate the meaning of deromanticized sex and provide a broader framing of rape. The story ultimately unfolds along somewhat predictable lines, but readers will appreciate the hopeful conclusion that doesn't pander with easy answers. Recommend this to readers who want a more contemporary, inclusive alternative to Kaysen's Girl, Interrupted.
