She chose her name well, because Stargirl is like no one Leo has ever seen on Earth, and she is about to shake up everybody’s world.
So what is it about?
Leo is normal. Average. Almost invisible really. And that is just the way he likes it. He is just trying to get through high school at Mica without too much fanfare. Absolutely none, preferably.
Stargirl is the opposite. She is wacky and weird and couldn’t blend in if she tried, but she doesn’t want to anyway. As I heard one person put it, a bit “Manic Pixie Dream-Girl” for teens. She recently started attending Mica High after years of homeschooling, naïve to the potential harsh and unkind nature of her fellow teeneagers. So she does what Stargirl does, she comes to school in period costume and serenades her classmates with her ukulele during lunch. Leo can’t help himself but be drawn to this crazy girl.
Leo watches Stargirl everyday at lunch, feeling the secondhand embarrassment Stargirl doesn’t seem to experience firsthand, just waiting for the bomb to drop. And it does, but instead of becoming a laughingstock, Stargirl becomes a star. People no longer simply tolerate her antics, they applaud them. Everyone at Mica High loves Stargirl and no one more than Leo.
But it won’t last. After all, this is High School where nothing is more transient than popularity, and one uncool action can lead to out-casting. Why can’t Stargirl just be normal? What would happen if she was? And what on Earth is Leo going to do about it?
Is it any good?
Yes. 3.5/5 star(girl)s. (HA I crack myself up) It’s a sweet story of first love and acceptance. Especially accepting the quirks and mistakes of the people we care about. At times the protagonists’ actions make them a bit unsympathetic but I think that was deliberate, no one is all good or bad. The main conflict which has everbody turning on Stargirl, didn’t really resonate with me as a major problem, but that is merely subjective and why I took some stars off of likeability. Also Jerry Spinelli is true to form and offers some really beautiful prose*. Possible spoiler ahead: The ending was the most unexpected for me, and I really liked that not everything was tied up with a perfect bow. I hope the movie stays true to it. Altogether, a solid and enjoyable read.
Is it clean? Yes. I’d rate it PG. The love story aspect is tame, especially for a book about 11th graders. As I recall there is little offensive language and little if any violence, however there is some fairly intense verbal bullying.
Overall, Stargirl is definitely worth a read if you like YA stories, books about unconventional people dealing with conventional problems, and/or if you plan on watching the movie.
*Side note on author Jerry Spinelli. Years ago I read his book Milkweed and it completely broke my heart. It’s beautiful and written in a way that gives the reader credit for being able to put the pieces together. I don’t recall anything too offensive, but it is about the Warsaw Ghetto during WWII so definitely an intense read. I reccomend it on memory but won’t write a full review since its been so long since I’ve read it.
Sarah's Library 